Although many GW alumni can claim the title of Master, few can be rightly called Commander. Rear Admiral Robert D. Reilly, Jr., MPA ’93, is the exception. On March 10, 2006, he was named commander of Military Sealift Command in a ceremony at the historic Washington Naval Yard.

As the new commander of Military Sealift Command, Reilly is responsible for a fleet of more than 120 government-owned and chartered ships, as well as a workforce of more than 10,000 civil service and military personnel operating worldwide. The Military Sealift Command is charged with transporting critical fuel, supplies, and ammunition to U.S. Navy ships and U.S. forces around the globe.

Commander Reilly comes from a family with more than a century of service in the U.S. Armed Forces. Before taking the helm at the Military Sealift Command, he served as the deputy assistant chief of naval operations for information technology at the office of the Chief of Naval Operations. His own career in the U.S. Navy has spanned 31 years and includes positions at sea and ashore, in locations such as South West Asia, the Kingdom of Bahrain, and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Reilly earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Washington, and a master's in public administration (National Resources) from GW. He is also a 1993 graduate of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.

Of the Military Sealift Command he says, “This command's mission remains enduring and vital to our nation. The high degree of professionalism, enthusiastic esprit de corps, and sense of duty let me know that MSC will continue to excel as a 21st-century organization. We're here to serve not only America, but America's maritime interests around the world.”