The NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps) and the National Naval Officers Association (NNOA) have renewed their agreement to work together to develop a diverse and inclusive workforce dedicated to the science and service of our nation.

Through a Memorandum of Cooperation signed on Dec. 1 by NOAA Corps Rear Adm. Nancy Hann, director of the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps and NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, and NNOA President Rear Adm. Sinclair M. Harris, U.S. Navy (Ret), the two organizations will collaborate with the goals of:

• developing, implementing and improving strategies for the achievement and management of a diverse workforce of NOAA Corps officers
• establishing and maintaining a positive image of the NOAA Corps in NNOA’s communities of influence, and
• providing personal and professional development opportunities to develop members of NNOA and the NOAA Corps.

“We are proud to stand beside and join forces with NNOA to ensure that our respective organizations are places where all feel valued, respected, and can thrive,” said Rear Adm. Hann. “Only then can we achieve meaningful and sustainable success.”

NNOA is an organization composed of active duty, reserve and retired officers, midshipmen and cadets, and interested civilians. NNOA is comprised of members of all ranks and ethnic groups and supports the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard in recruiting, developing, and retaining a diverse Officer Corps that is representative of the best our nation has to offer.

NNOA is committed to leading, and mentoring officers, enlisted members, and civilian employees of the sea services, as well as our country’s youth, to enable them to achieve their highest goals. NNOA is also committed to being a change agent in all areas of the sea services and related military organizations; identifying diversity problem areas and bringing them to the attention of all cognizant authorities.

The NOAA Corps is a uniformed service of the United States tasked with providing officers technically competent to assume positions of leadership and command in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Department of Commerce programs and in the Armed Forces during times of war or national emergency.

To meet human resources needs, the NOAA Corps requires a highly qualified diverse workforce that is committed to NOAA’s mission. In turn, the NOAA Corps is committed to providing its workforce with training and professional development, a nurturing workplace free of discrimination or harassment, and an environment in which all can reach their full potential through a culture of diversity and inclusion.