Reed Stephenson was appointed in November 2024 to serve as the Deputy Assistant Commissioner (DAC) of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Office of Training and Development (OTD). With 825 employees and a $300 million budget, he oversees the design and delivery of basic, advanced, and leadership training across CBP’s academies and centers: the Border Patrol Academy, Border Patrol Canine Academy, Field Operations Academy, Field Operations Canine Academy, Air and Marine Operations Academy, Trade and Cargo Academy, Advanced Training Center, Leadership Development Center, Executive Training Center, Instructional Design Center, Distance Learning Center, and the Workforce Care Training Center.
Mr. Stephenson joined CBP in 2015 as the first Director of OTD’s Instructional Design Center where he modernized CBP’s learning and training strategy. In 2017, he was selected to serve as the Executive Director of the CBP’s Leadership Development Center (LDC) and lead the design and delivery of resident leadership courses to over 3,000 journeymen, new supervisors, managers, and executives annually. He also led the CBP Mentor Program and CBP’s Tuition Assistance Program.
Since 2023, Mr. Stephenson served as the Executive Director of the Advanced Training Center (ATC), managing campus operations for all CBP tenants who run their day-to-day operations at the ATC, with an annual throughput of 12,000 students.
Prior to joining CBP, Mr. Stephenson served 25 years on active duty with the U.S. Coast Guard, where he achieved the rank of Captain. His final assignment was as the Commanding Officer of the U.S. Coast Guard Training Center in Yorktown, VA. Previous assignments include Director for Training and Evaluation at the White House Military Office, and Director of Training at Coast Guard Training Center Petaluma. His operational assignments include Chief of the Prevention Department at Sector Sault Ste. Marie, Supervisor of Marine Safety Detachments in Grand Haven, MI and St. Thomas, USVI, as an inspector at Marine Safety Office New Orleans, and as a deck officer onboard the cutters Morgenthau and Cherokee.
Mr. Stephenson serves on the Federal Law Enforcement Training Accreditation (FLETA) Board of Directors. Mr. Stephenson is a graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Marine Transportation. He also holds a Master of Management degree from Aquinas College and a Master of Arts degree in Education from San Diego State University.