Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

Eleanor V. Valentin was the first female flag officer to serve as director of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

Medical Service Corps. She assumed command of Navy Medicine Support Command and assumed duties as the 16th director of the Medical Service Corps on 1 October 2009.

Early life and education

Eleanor Vivian Valentin is a native of

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

, Washington and former college cheerleader. After receiving her Bachelor of Science degrees in

Zoology Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the anatomy, structure, embryology, Biological classification, classification, Ethology, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinction, extinct, and ...

and

Psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

, she completed a Master's degree in Public Health (Health Policy and Planning), and a Master of Science degree in Public Health (

Biostatistics Biostatistics (also known as biometry) is a branch of statistics that applies statistical methods to a wide range of topics in biology. It encompasses the design of biological experiments, the collection and analysis of data from those experimen ...

) at the

University of Hawaiʻi The University of Hawaiʻi System is a public college and university system in Hawaii. The system confers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees through three universities, seven community colleges, an employment training center, ...

Naval career

In 1982 Valentin was commissioned as a

lieutenant junior grade Lieutenant junior grade is a junior commissioned officer rank used in a number of navies. United States Lieutenant (junior grade), commonly abbreviated as LTJG or, historically, Lt. (j.g.) (as well as variants of both abbreviations), i ...

, Medical Service Corps,

, and for the next decade she served in a variety of department head and administrative officer positions at Naval Hospital San Diego; Admiral J. T. Boone Branch Medical Clinic in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

; Naval Medical Clinic Norfolk, Virginia; U.S. Naval Hospital Guam;

Armed Forces Institute of Pathology The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) (1862 – September 15, 2011) was a U.S. government institution concerned with diagnostic consultation, education, and research in the medical specialty of pathology. Overview It was founded in ...

in Washington, D.C.; and U.S. Naval Hospital Yokosuka, Japan. Valentin served as director for Administration at Naval Medical Clinic in

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

from 1994 to 1997. Following that duty, Valentin reported to the

Bureau of Medicine and Surgery The Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED) is an agency of the United States Department of the Navy that manages health care activities for the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. BUMED operates hospitals and other healthcare ...

and became the branch head for

TRICARE Tricare (styled TRICARE) is a health care program of the United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the fede ...

Marketing and Communications. In October 2000, Valentin became the director, Regional Operations, in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs) TRICARE Management Activity. There, she led staff and joint service teams in developing plans and strategies to implement statutory and policy guidance for the delivery of healthcare services to eligible beneficiaries worldwide. From April 2003 until April 2006, she served as executive officer, Naval Hospital

Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi ( ; ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, Texas, Nueces County with portions extending into Aransas County, T ...

; and from May 2006 through May 2008, she served as commanding officer, Naval Hospital/Health Clinic Cherry Point. Formerly, she served as chief of staff for Navy Medicine National Capital Area. Valentin was promoted to rear admiral on September 1, 2009. On October 1, 2009, Valentin assumed duties as chief, Medical Service Corps. With her promotion to flag rank, Valentin became the first female director of the Medical Service Corps to reach that milestone. Valentin retired in 2014.

References

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Official United States Navy Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valentin, Eleanor V. 1952 births Living people 21st-century American women University of Washington alumni University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa alumni Military personnel from Seattle American military personnel of Filipino descent United States Navy rear admirals Female admirals of the United States Navy Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal (United States)

Early life and education

Naval career

See also

References