Coast Guard welcomes new Atlantic Area Commander

united states coast guard 

News Release  

U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area
Contact: Coast Guard Atlantic Area Public Affairs
Office: (757) 374-7991
After Hours: (757) 452-8336
Atlantic Area online newsroom

Coast Guard welcomes new Atlantic Area Commander

Vice Adm. Scott Buschmann, outgoing commander of the Coast Guard Atlantic Command, thanks Adm. Karl Schultz, Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, for his support during his change-of-command ceremony in Portsmouth, Virginia, June 10, 2020. Buschmann was relieved by Vice Adm. Steven Poulin. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Stephen Lehmann. Adm. Karl Schultz, Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, addresses the audience during a change of command ceremony for the Coast Guard Atlantic Command in Portsmouth, Virginia, June 10, 2020. Vice Adm. Scott Buschmann was relieved by Vice Adm. Steven Poulin. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Stephen Lehmann. Vice Adm. Steven Poulin, incoming commander of the Coast Guard Atlantic Command, addresses the audience during his change-of-command ceremony in Portsmouth, Virginia, June 10, 2020. Poulin relieved Vice Adm. Scott Buschmann. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Stephen Lehmann.

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PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Vice Adm. Steven D. Poulin assumed duties as Coast Guard Atlantic Area Commander, Coast Guard Defense Force East Commander, and Director of DHS Joint Task Force-East during a change-of-command ceremony at Coast Guard Base Portsmouth, Virginia ,Wednesday.

Poulin assumed command from Vice Adm. Scott A. Buschman who served as the Atlantic Area Commander since May 2018.

 

Before assuming the role of commander of Atlantic Area, Poulin served as the U.S. Southern Command’s Director of Operations, directing U.S. military operations across the Caribbean Basin plus Central and South America. Poulin’s other flag assignments include the Judge Advocate General and Chief Counsel of the Coast Guard, where he led a dedicated group of legal professionals and was responsible for the delivery of all legal services in support of the Coast Guard's missions, its units and its people. From June 2012 to April 2014, he served as the Director of Governmental and Public Affairs, where he was responsible for external engagement with Congress, the media and other intergovernmental entities.

 

Previously Poulin served as the Chief, Office of Maritime and International Law. From April 2009 to July 2010, he was the Commander of Coast Guard Sector Mobile, where he directed Coast Guard operations in Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle. He further served as the Incident Commander for Deepwater Horizon oil spill response operations in that same geographic area from April 2010 to September 2010. His previous operational tours include Deputy Commander, Coast Guard Sector Mobile; Deputy Commander, Coast Guard Group Galveston, Texas; and Law Enforcement Officer and Assistant Operations Officer at Coast Guard Group Mobile, Alabama. He was assigned as a Deck Watch Officer on the Coast Guard Cutter Dauntless.  

 

Poulin also was a Special Adviser for Border and Transportation Security in the Office of Vice President Cheney, from 2005-2007. From 2003-2004, he was the Coast Guard’s liaison to the State Department’s Office of Oceans Affairs, where he served on U.S. delegations to myriad committees of the International Maritime Organization. He was the Legal Counsel for the Coast Guard’s Port Security Director from 2002-2003, where he helped negotiate, draft, and implement new port and maritime security requirements. From 1999-2001, he served as the Legislative Counsel in the Coast Guard’s Office of Congressional Affairs. He also served on the U.S. delegation to the Legal Committee of the IMO, from 1994-1996. From 1992-1994, he was assigned to the Coast Guard’s General Law Division.

 

He graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1984 with a Bachelor of Science in Management. He was awarded his Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the University of Miami School of Law in 1992. Other degrees include: Master of Law (Environmental Law), with highest honors, from the George Washington University Law School in 2002; Master of Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College in 2005; and Master of Public Administration from the University of South Alabama in 1989. His military decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (five awards), Meritorious Service Medal (four awards), Coast Guard Commendation Medal (three awards), and Coast Guard Achievement Medal.

 

Buschman is scheduled to relieve Vice Admiral Daniel B. Abel, as the U.S. Coast Guard Deputy Commandant for Operations in Washington, D.C.

 

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