Biography

Bob Clark served six years as the 17th President of Wesley College before retiring in June 2021 after ensuring the long-term viability of the Wesley College brand with a historic Acquisition Agreement signed with Delaware State University. The agreement provides expanded educational opportunities to the state of Delaware and surrounding regions. While serving as the Wesley College President, President Clark served on numerous nonprofit boards and was an in-demand public speaker on leadership, ethics, and educational innovation. In recognition of his leadership, and service to the College and the community, the Board of Trustees unanimously voted to bestow upon him the honor and title of President Emeritus.

Prior to assuming the Presidency of Wesley College, he served as the Joint Service Coordinator at the Pennsylvania State University. Additionally, Clark served on Penn State’s Undergraduate Education Leadership Council, and guest lectured at Penn State’s Schreyer Honors College Leadership Academy.

In February 2022, President Joe Biden appointed Clark to the United States Naval Academy Board of Visitors for a three-year term, along with five other prominent national leaders. He is a proud Navy Veteran and served 32 years in the Submarine Force. During his years of service as a Submarine Officer he served on five nuclear powered fast attack submarines, as well as in some of the most critical and rewarding positions in the Navy, including; 84th Commandant of Midshipmen at the United States Naval Academy, where he was the longest standing Commandant in Naval Academy history; Commodore of Submarine Squadron Four; Deputy Executive Assistant, and then Executive Assistant, to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations, where he was the only officer in the history of the office to hold both positions concurrently; and Commanding Officer of the nuclear powered submarine USS Connecticut (SSN 22). 

Born in St. Petersburg, Florida, Clark spent his formative years growing up in Howell, New Jersey; Ann Arbor, Michigan; and West Chester, Pennsylvania, where he was a 2007 inductee into the West Chester East High School Hall of Fame. A 1980 graduate of the Naval Academy Prep School, and a 1984 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Clark also earned a Master of Science degree in National Security Affairs from the Naval Post Graduate School. Additionally, he was part of a select group of senior leaders selected to attend the Navy Corporate Business Course on Executive Management at the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Degrees

• M.S., National Security Affairs, Naval Postgraduate School (1991)
• B.S., General Engineering, U.S. Naval Academy (1984)