The Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth swore in Rich Morales, of East Greenwich, R.I., as a new Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army (CASA) during an investiture ceremony at the Pentagon on December 3, 2024.
Morales is a Professor of Practice of Engineering at Brown University, where he teaches design, strategy and decision-making and volunteers as an advisor to the University’s Formula One race car design team, baseball team, and the school’s veteran community. He serves on national boards alongside leaders from business, academic, and nonprofits, advising start-up efforts in systems integration and innovation, and supports leader development at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. He served in the U.S. Army for three decades.
“I am honored to connect our Army to my communities, state and national initiatives, research expertise and technology needs, and most especially to support people, institutions, innovation in Rhode Island and across New England.” said Morales.
A retired Brigadier General and Purple Heart recipient, Morales served globally, leading in five hostile fire zones and serving in roles ranging from leading a tank platoon in the Gulf War to duty in the Executive Office of the President. He commanded U.N. peacekeepers in the Balkans, led an Army Task Force arrayed across one third of Baghdad -- a Valorous Unit recognized for extraordinary heroism in combat, was aide to the Head of NASA, a White House Fellow at the Office of Management and Budget, and led a national Presidential initiative to revolutionize how our country supports transitioning military and their families. He later commanded an Army ROTC brigade responsible for officer development at 97 universities, chaired the Department of Systems Engineering at the U.S. Military Academy, and carried out research in collaboration with DoD, industry, the public sector, and leading think tanks.
Morales holds a B.S. in aerospace engineering from West Point, a Yale M.B.A., graduate degrees in strategic studies from the Naval College of Command and Staff and resource strategy from the National Defense University, and a Ph.D. in engineering from the University of Cambridge. He studied systems dynamics and organizational learning at MIT and is a Harvard Kennedy School Senior Executive Fellow and Yale School of Management Donaldson Fellow. The Morales family moved 16 times before settling in Rhode Island.
“It’s an honor to have these outstanding new CASAs representing the Army,” said Secretary of the Army Wormuth at the ceremony. “Our CASAs are instrumental in building and maintaining relationships between the Army and communities across the country. The work they do is critically important, especially in our efforts to spread the Army story and recruit the next generation of soldiers.”
Each state, the District of Columbia, and the five U.S. territories have one or more CASAs appointed to provide a vital link between the Army and the communities for which they serve. CASAs are usually business or civic leaders who possess a keen interest in the welfare of the Army and their communities.