Rachel Napolitan Named USACE Public Affairs Officer of the Year

USAG HUMPHREYS, South Korea — Rachel Napolitan, Chief of Public Affairs for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Far East District (USACE FED), was named the 2024 USACE Public Affairs Officer of the Year April 25, 2025. The award is the highest individual honor within the USACE Public Affairs Community of Practice.

“This recognition highlights the achievement of a tremendous leader within our district,” Lt. Col. Robert Howell, Deputy Commander, USACE FED, said. “[Napolitan] led her team to promote and generate awareness of how the Far East District enables the joint force here in South Korea. She is our best.”

As the District’s senior communicator, Napolitan oversees messaging for one of the Army’s most strategically important engineering districts. Her mission is to clearly and effectively explain complex engineering work to both internal and external audiences throughout the Korean Peninsula.

“[Napolitan] maintains relationships with all our stakeholders’ Public Affairs Officers to ensure our voice is part of the conversation,” Col. Jeremiah Willis, FED Commander said. “Her work continues to build our reputation and ensures our audiences hear us.”

It's a reputation that has caught the eye of senior U.S. Army Corps of Engineers individuals as far away as Washington, DC, as well.

“Rachel stands out among her peers—she is an excellent writer, strategic planner and inspirational leader,” Christopher Augsburger, Director of Public Affairs, USACE Headquarters, is quick to point out. “She guides and empowers her staff to work collaboratively with partners and leaders to achieve well-articulated communication goals and objectives that support the District’s missions, programs and priorities.”

“Public affairs isn’t just writing articles or taking photos,” Napolitan shares, touching on her philosophy. “It’s about understanding how every medium… social media, public meetings, community events… contributes to the full picture of communication.”

She works daily with engineers, project managers and senior leaders to translate technical language into stories the public can understand.

According to Napolitan, construction and engineering have a right or wrong answer. She described it as “an answer at the end of an equation,” but with communication, it is “the answer you make at the end.”

“Sometimes I feel like I’m learning to be an engineer just to explain what the engineers do,” she said. “But that’s the job; I need to help the public understand what’s going on.”

Her writing and multimedia work have appeared in Stars and Stripes, CNN, and have been highlighted by high level cabinet officials within the beltway. Her command of communication has made her a trusted partner across U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and the broader U.S. Indo-Pacific Command footprint.

One of Napolitan’s most impactful initiatives is the creation of the FED “Communication Playbook,” a robust internal tool that equips senior leaders with talking points, project facts, stakeholder contacts, and media guidance. According to Col. Juan Martinez, Director of Public Affairs for Eighth Army, the playbook was so effective that Eighth Army developed a similar version to mirror what she created.

As FED Public Affairs Officer, Napolitan also oversees the district’s Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) outreach program, which connects U.S. military students in Korea with USACE engineers and career opportunities. Her team visits local schools on Camp Humphreys and hosts classroom sessions throughout the year.

Napolitan emphasized that public affairs is more than media or photography—it’s about seeing the whole communications ecosystem and how people view communication.

“If you want to truly communicate, though your message, if you want to truly communicate what [USACE] is doing… You need to look from a holistic picture,” Napolitan said.

“In public affairs, you are the public face of an agency, you're the person who gets to go talk to the community about what's going on. So, getting to even in those difficult conversations, getting to at least articulate what is going on, can help everyone come to a better understanding.”

Her approach to communication strategy is rooted in collaboration.

“I have a phenomenal team that works for me that implements all the crazy ideas I have,” Napolitan said. “I feel really proud of both myself and the District. Sometimes being in Korea, we can forget the impact the stories we tell can have and how far reaching the impact can be.”

“She is richly deserving of the opportunity and selecting her to receive this prestigious award [is] an investment to USACE and the Army at large,” wrote Col. Martinez.

As one of the youngest public affairs chiefs in USACE, Napolitan continues to lead with a mindset centered on opportunity.

“I love doing what I do. Over the past year, I have had the chance to see our successes all over the peninsula and communicate that on behalf of the teams making it happen. This is a reminder for me of why I love my job and being a part of the USACE FED team,” she said.