Biography Submission Instruction

SUBMITTING FLAG OFFICER BIOGRAPHIES AND PHOTOS

OPNAVINST 2630.2 "Official Flag Officer Biographies" provides direction for the submission and format of official flag officer biographies on Navy.mil. The following guidance is taken from that instruction:

1. New and updated flag officer biographies and official photos should be submitted to CHINFO via email at: flagbios@us.navy.mil. Update submissions should include a basic description of what is changed in the biography (e.g., updated biography of Rear Admiral (RADM) Smith reflecting promotion to RADM and assignment as...) in the email.
2. Biographies should be submitted as an MS Word document or text file and should not include embedded symbols, graphics, or photos.
3. Official portraits should be submitted as a separate.JPG file at the highest resolution available (minimum desired quality is 5 by 7 inches at 300 dots per inch (dpi)). There is no need to submit a photo if it is the same one posted. Uncovered portraits in service dress blues are preferred.
4. Biographies for those who have been selected for flag rank but have not yet promoted will be posted following the official date of rank.
5. Biographies for RADMs (O-7 and O-8) will not distinguish between upper and lower-half in the title.
6. CHINFO will verify all submissions with PERS-N00F before posting.
7. SECNAVINST 5720.44C prohibits the inclusion place and date of birth, age, current residence, or any information about family members in biographies posted to publicly-accessible Web sites.
8. Biographies are removed from the U.S. Navy Biographies Navy.mil page upon retirement or pay grade determination removing the individual from flag rank.
   • Upon retirement, the last updated biography is moved to the U.S. Navy Retired Flag Officer Biography Navy.mil page with the addition of the retirement date.
   • Upon a final pay grade determination of a lesser rank, the biography header will be adjusted to reflect the new rank and the photo will include the text "Depicted as [rank]" on the effective date of the change.
   • Upon a pay grade determination removing the individual from flag rank, the officer's biography will be removed.

FLAG OFFICER BIOGRAPHY FORMAT

1. Every career is different; therefore the format described in paragraph 3 below is designed to allow for some license in tailoring each biography to the individual. To maintain uniformity, any biographies not submitted per the guidelines in this enclosure will be returned for editing.
2. All flag officer biographies are edited per the Associated Press (AP) Stylebook and are reviewed for spelling, grammar and punctuation.
3. The format for flag officer biographies follows:
   • The header will include full rank and first name, middle initial, last name followed by current assignment (title, command). Call signs and nicknames can be included in quotations marks following the middle initial.
   • The first paragraph of the biography will include the hometown (town, state), presented as, "...is a native of...", and college history to include graduate school (school, graduation date, degree) and commissioning source.
   • The next paragraph(s) will describe operational, afloat, and in-career-field tours in chronological order including command, platform, position, and any relevant operations participated in.
   • The next paragraph(s) will include fleet support, ashore, and out-of-career-field assignments in chronological order to include command, position, and any relevant activities.
   • Joint assignments may be broken out into a separate paragraph or included with the previous paragraph.
   • The final paragraph may include warfare qualifications (if desired) and will include the awards summary listing personal military awards as well as any unique awards received (e.g., Vice Admiral Stockdale Award), and when.
   • An additional paragraph may be added at the end to include any relevant civilian accreditations.
4. Some Navy unique considerations:
   • Ship names are not capitalized and should include the hull number without hyphen in the first reference.
   • Ship names with "USS" are not preceded with "the." It is appropriate to refer to "USS Carl Vinson" or the "Carl Vinson," but not "the USS Carl Vinson."
   • Names of operations, numbered fleets, and groups should be written as follows: Operation Iraqi Freedom, U.S. 6th Fleet, or Fleet Hospital 5.
   • One serves "on" a ship or "aboard" a ship, but not "in" a ship.

SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE (SES) BIOGRAPHIES

1. The Executive Management Program Office provides centralized services to the Department of the Navy’s senior executive corps. 
   • Questions regarding the Department’s senior executive cadre may be sent by e-mail to navy.ses@navy.mil.
   • SES Biographies are located at https://www.secnav.navy.mil/donhr/About/Senior-Executives/Pages/Biographies.aspx