Bill Ball: Director, SODV

Tel: (202) 787-1625
Email: bball@oceanleadership.org

Bill graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in 1971 and received a M.S.E. in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from the University of Michigan in 1979. (Go Blue!) He was then responsible for the design of numerous ships for the Navy but is most proud of the glass reinforced mine hunter design he lead in Italy. After 20 years designing ships for the Navy, Bill turned his talents to managing the acquisition of new research vessels for the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). When congressional funding for the NOAA ships ceased, he left the government to join a naval architecture firm where he managed the technical and program management support for a large navy ship acquisition program. In the fall of 2005, Bill joined JOI to manage the Scientific Ocean Drilling Vessel Conversion. He resides in Annapolis and enjoys boatbuilding, sailing, golf and barging the French canals.