Gregory Slavonic previously served as the 18th Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower and Reserve Affairs.

Slavonic served as the deputy and principal assistant to the Secretary of the Navy, as well as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Management Officer for the Department of the Navy. Additionally, he oversaw intelligence activities, intelligence-related activities, special access programs, critical infrastructure, and sensitive activities within the Department.

As the Assistant Secretary for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, Secretary Slavonic was responsible for the overall supervision and oversight of manpower and reserve component affairs of the Department of the Navy. Prior to joining the Department, he most recently served as Chief of Staff for U.S. Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and was Lankford’s last chief when he was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Prior to Secretary Slavonic’s service on the Hill, he was a senior leader at the Computer Sciences Corporation where he planned and executed several nationwide U.S. Navy community outreach engagements. For the past 40 years, the Secretary has held various civilian senior level positions in the communications industry and held positions with broadcasting and print organizations. He was also president of Flagbridge Strategic Communications, a consulting company focused on strategic communications and leadership development programs. Secretary Slavonic has written two books on leadership development and co-authored a book on American Olympian Jim Thorpe.

He also served as the Executive Director of the Jim Thorpe Association and Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. In this role, the Secretary oversaw the annual presentation of the Jim Thorpe Award, presented annually to the “outstanding defensive back” in NCAA (Division I) football. His interest in sports lead him to become a minority partner with the Oklahoma City CAVALRY, a professional basketball team in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) league, which won the CBA championship in 1997.

Secretary Slavonic retired from the U.S Navy/Navy Reserve after a 34-year career. He began by enlisting as a Seaman Recruit and concluded a distinguished career attaining the rank of Rear Admiral. During his Navy career he held four command assignments, served in combat deployments to Vietnam, Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. His final assignment was as the Navy’s Sixth Special Assistant to Chief of Information (CHINFO) and Director of Public Affairs Program (Reserve). The Secretary also served as the co-chair for the design and building of the USS Oklahoma Memorial at Pearl Harbor to remember the 429 Sailors and Marines who served aboard the battleship and lost their lives on December 7, 1941.

His service awards include Bronze Star Medal (two awards), Legion of Merit Medal, Presidential Unit Citation, Combat Action Ribbon and many other service and campaign medals.

Secretary Slavonic earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Oklahoma State University and M.Ed. from the University of Central Oklahoma, where he was recognized with the Distinguished Alumni Award.