Vincent W . Patton III Vincent W . Patton , III , B . A . , B . S . , M . A . , M . Th . , Ed . D . ( born 1954 ) is a retired Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard in the United States . Career overview . A native of Detroit , Michigan , Patton retired from the U . S . Coast Guard 1 November 2002 , after serving 30 years of active duty . He became the first African American selected as the service ' s senior - most enlisted ranking position as the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard in 1998 . His career included staff and operational assignments both afloat and ashore throughout the United States , and a joint military service assignment in Cuba and Haiti . Job description and accomplishments . Patton served as the eighth Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard from May 1998 to October 2002 . As the service ' s top senior enlisted leader and ombudsman , he was the principal advisor to the Commandant of the Coast Guard , his directorates , and the Secretaries of Transportation and Defense , with primary focus on quality of life issues , career development , work environment and personnel matters affecting over 40 , 000 active duty , reserve enlisted , and civilian personnel servicewide . He routinely addressed these specific issues before appropriate United States Senate and House committees in the United States Congress , as well as with the Commander - in - Chief , along with his senior enlisted counterparts of the other four military services . His numerous military awards include the Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal , two Meritorious Service Medal s , three Coast Guard Commendation Medal s , three Coast Guard Achievement Medal s , the Commandant ' s Letter of Commendation Ribbon , eight Meritorious Team awards and nine Coast Guard Good Conduct awards . He also earned the Cutterman Insignia ( sea duty recognition ) and is one of a few Coast Guardsmen to have earned the coveted " Parachutist Wings " specialty badge during his assignment with Joint Task Force 160 . Education . A 1972 graduate of Cass Technical High School , Patton became an Eagle Scout and was also a member of the U . S . Naval Sea Cadet Corps ( NSCC ) JAMES M . HANNAN division during his high school years . All of Patton ' s initial college education through doctorate degree was earned while on active duty . He received his Doctor of Education degree in 1984 from the American University , Washington , DC . His dissertation was based on the development and implementation of the Coast Guard Enlisted Evaluation System . He has a Masters degree in Counseling Psychology from Loyola University Chicago ; a Bachelor of Science degree in Social Work from Shaw College at Detroit , Michigan ; and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from Pacific Union College , Angwin , California . His extensive military education includes U . S . Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Academy , U . S . Army Sergeants Major Academy , and the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute ( DEOMI ) . After retirement . After his military retirement , Patton completed a Master of Theology degree in Applied Religious Studies from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley , California . In addition , he was an adjunct professor teaching ' Philosophy of Ethics ' at the University of California , Berkeley . Since 2003 , he has performed summer missionary work with the International Rescue Committee in Haiti , and worked as an executive director for the non - profit Halley ' s Comet Foundation , teaching " at - risk " teenagers seamanship and sailing skills . He served as a volunteer tour advisor and chaplain for the USO , participating in the " Operation Handshake " program to visit U . S . military personnel during the 2004 Thanksgiving holiday in Guantanamo Bay , Cuba , and in the 2003 holiday season with U . S . troops in the Persian Gulf and Southwest Asia involved with Operations " Iraqi Freedom " and " Enduring Freedom . " From 2004 - 2011 , he was Director of Government Partnerships & Alliances for Military Advantage , also known as " Military . com , " the largest website devoted to the military community covering benefits , information and transition . From June 2002 - June 2013 he served on the Board of Visitors for the Defense Intelligence Agency ' s National Intelligence University . Presently , Patton is Vice President for Homeland Security Programs with the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association ( AFCEA ) International . In addition , Patton is a managing partner with Pinnacle Five , LLC , a group of former senior enlisted members from the DoD services who served with him during his tenure as Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard . He holds board memberships with the Coast Guard Foundation , Noncommissioned Officers Association and the U . S . Naval Institute . He is a member of the American Public University System Industry Advisory Council , and also serves on the Unitarian Universalist Association Committee on Military Ministry . Personal life . Patton resides in Alexandria , Virginia and has two adult children ( daughter and son ) . His son is a U . S . Army veteran ( 82nd Airborne Division ) .