Rear Adm. Richard A. Rodriguez is 1988 graduate of the United States Naval Academy. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from USNA and a Master of Business Administration from Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio. He is also a graduate of the Joint Forces Staff College, Norfolk, Virginia, and completed courses at Columbia University, New York.

Upon commissioning from USNA, his first assignment was as a graduate assistant football coach at USNA he completed Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training with Class 161 in 1989.
Rodriguez’s West Coast assignments in Naval Special Warfare include SEAL Team One assistant platoon officer in charge (OIC), platoon OIC and operations officer. He executed tours at Naval Special Warfare Group One, Naval Special Warfare Command and completed a deployment tour at U.S. Naval Forces Europe, London, England.

Command tours include NR Special Boat Team Twenty, NR Naval Special Warfare Unit Ten and NR Naval Special Warfare Group Three. He also served as military representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Military Committee.
Joint assignments include: Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force – Arabian Peninsula, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense – Special Operations/Low Intensity Conflict, and Chief of Staff U.S. Africa Command, Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa. His service overseas includes Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. Prior to being assigned to the Joint Staff, he served as deputy commander, Naval Special Warfare Command.

In civilian capacity, Rodriguez is and has been a senior executive with several homebuilding and real estate development companies both public and private, national and international. As CEO of Emaar Dubai, he oversaw the development and construction of multiple iconic projects including the Burj Khalifa, the tallest tower in the world.

Last Updated: 3 April 2023