Navy Capt. Kurtis A. Mole for appointment to the grade of rear admiral (lower half).  Mole is currently serving as information warfare commander, Carrier Strike Group Five, Yokosuka, Japan.

2021 Biography follows:

CAPT Mole is a native of Bowie, Maryland.  He enlisted in the Navy as a Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) in 1988 and completed the Chinese course of instruction at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California. CAPT Mole graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland in 1995 with a Bachelors of Science in Economics and minor in Chinese.  Originally commissioned as a Surface Warfare Officer (SWO), he was selected for re-designation to Cryptologic Warfare Officer in 2000.

He assumed his present duties as Commander, National Security Agency / Central Security Service Hawaii in July 2018, and will detach in April 2021. He is slated to report in June to CTF-70 in Yokosuka, Japan as Information Warfare Commander. 

Duties afloat include service at the unit level as a SWO aboard USS Leftwich (DD 984) and at Assault Craft Unit 5 as Officer-in-Charge of a detachment of Landing Craft Air Cushion; at the strike group level as Fleet Information Warfare Center team leader for USS Constellation Strike Group and USS Carl Vinson Strike Group, as the senior cryptologist for USS Kitty Hawk Strike Group; and finally at the fleet level as Information Operations Officer for Commander, U.S. Seventh Fleet embarked USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19).  He has completed multiple deployments to the Arabian Gulf and western Pacific throughout his career.

Duties ashore include Department Head at Navy Information Operations Command (NIOC) Colorado, Executive Officer at NIOC Whidbey Island and NIOC Maryland, Head for Information Warfare Community Enlisted Assignments at Navy Personnel Command, Director’s Fellow at the National Security Agency, Senior Operations Officer (SOO) for the National Security Operations Center, and Deputy Chief, NSA/CSS Cybersecurity Threat Operations Center (NCTOC).

CAPT Mole holds an Information Systems Operations Certificate from the Naval Postgraduate School, a Masters of Business Administration from National University, and a Masters of Arts degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College.

His personal awards include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, two Meritorious Service Medals, and various Navy and Marine Corps Commendation and Achievement Medals.  He is married to his wife, Cheryl. They have four children and reside in Pearl Harbor.