On May 9, 2014, Dr. Richard W. (Rick) Spinrad was named by the Obama Administration as NOAA’s Chief Scientist.
An internationally recognized scientist and executive with more than 30 years of experience, Dr. Spinrad is the senior scientist for the agency, driving policy and program direction for science and technology priorities. Until this appointment, Dr. Spinrad served as vice president for research at Oregon State University (OSU) in Corvallis, Oregon, and from 2003 until 2010, was the head of NOAA’s Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research and the head of the National Ocean Service.