A native of Schenectady, New York, Captain Meghan Bodnar graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science degree with honors in Oceanography, minoring in Spanish.
Afloat, she completed her division officer tours in the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) as the Electronic Warfare Officer and, after completing Nuclear Power Training at Charleston, South Carolina and Ballston Spa, New York, in Pre-Commissioning Unit George H W Bush (CVN 77) as the Reactor Electrical Division Officer.
Captain Bodnar deployed with Bonhomme Richard to the U.S. 5th and 7th Fleet areas of operation from 2004 – 2005 in support of the Global War on Terror. She completed her department head tours in the destroyer USS Decatur (DDG 73) as the Operations Officer and USS George H W Bush (CVN 77) as the Chemistry Radiological Assistant. Aboard Decatur she completed an availability and complete training cycle. She deployed with USS George H W Bush from February – November 2014 to the U.S. 6th and 5th Fleet areas of operation. She served as Executive Officer and then Commanding Officer of USS Gridley (DDG 101) from December 2019 – November 2022. On Gridley, she completed deployments to U.S. 6th and 4th Fleets as Executive Officer as well as U.S. 7th and 5th Fleets as Commanding Officer. More recently, she served as Reactor Officer on USS Nimitz (CVN 68) from August 2023 – September 2024. On Nimitz, she led Reactor Department in completing the ship’s last lifetime Planned Incremental Availability and the ship’s Basic Phase.
Ashore, she earned her Master’s in Business Administration from Harvard University in May 2010 through the Surface Warfare Officer MBA program. She served on the staff of the Commander, Naval Air Forces Pacific in the Nuclear Propulsion, N9, office from July 2012 – August 2013. From November 2015 – January 2017, she served as the Flag Aide to the Chief of Naval Operations. Before reporting to Gridley, she served as the Surface Nuclear Program Manager for the Chief of Naval Personnel in Arlington, VA. She served as a special assistant to the Commander, Naval Air Forces Pacific Detachment Bremerton from September 2024 – May 2025, before reporting to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency as the Deputy Director for Operations in June 2025.
Captain Bodnar’s awards include the Meritorious Service Medal (four awards), the Navy Commendation Medal (three awards), the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal (two awards), the Battle “E” award (two awards), and multiple unit and service awards.