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Dr. Donna (Mischell) Navarro

Executive Director for Personnel Readiness

U.S. Coast Guard

Dr. Mischell Navarro assumed the duties as the Executive Director for Personnel Readiness in Jan 2024. She is responsible for implementing the vision for human capital management; to recruit, develop, and retain a diverse, proficient and effective workforce to meet the current and future needs of the Service’s nearly 60,000-member active duty, reserve, and civilian workforce. Upon joining the Coast Guard in October 2020, she was assigned as the Deputy Assistant Commandant for Human Resources, Chief of Military Personnel Policy, and Senior Advisor to the Commandant for Diversity and Inclusion.  

Before coming to USCG, Dr. Navarro served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Financial Management, Office of Environmental Management, Department of Energy. She also served as Chief Human Capital Officer, Office of Management and Budget, Headquarters National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Washington, D.C. In that capacity, she worked as a strategic partner across NNSA and DOE to ensure that human resource policies, procedures, and practices, including workforce planning strategies, fostering sound human resource management, and providing an accountability system that adhered to merit system principles and maintained legal compliance, effectiveness, efficiency, and timeliness. She joined the Senior Executive Service in 2017.  

Previous positions include Executive Director, Manpower, Personnel and Services, Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC), Barksdale Air Force Base (AFB), LA, where she provided leadership and direction to the nuclear command. She oversaw personnel, resources, manpower allocations, accession, hiring, readiness, and force development planning and implementation. Dr. Navarro also served as Chief, Manpower, Resources, and Civilian Personnel Division, AFGSC. She managed the execution of funded and unfunded command requirements along with officer and enlisted grades allocation and personnel assignments for 36K members and influenced programming of more than $3.4B annually. Prior to that assignment, she was assigned to the Pentagon as a Senior Program Analyst, Manpower and Personnel Budget Development, and a Liaison to Congress.  

Dr. Navarro began her career in 1991 at Misawa Air Base, Japan. Throughout her career, she has held various key positions within the United States and OCONUS at Wing, Major Command, Field Operating Agency, and Headquarters. During her career, she has served in multiple positions within Manpower, Budget, Personnel and Services. She is a graduate of Air War College, Air Command and Staff College, Squadron Officer School, and holds a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and a master’s degree in Education and Counseling.