Christopher Strager Email & Phone Number

Christopher S. Strager retired from the National Weather Service in August, 2020. Prior to his retirement, he served as the Director of the Central Region of the National Weather Service (NWS) in Kansas City, MO. Mr. Strager received his Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology from the Pennsylvania State University in May 1983 and his Master’s degree in Meteorology from Texas A&M University in 1989. Mr. Strager started his meteorological career as an enlisted weather observer with the Air Force in 1978. After several tours as a weather officer, he left Air Force active duty in May 1992 to begin his career with the NWS. Chris maintained his ties with the Air Force by serving as the Commander of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard’s 146th Weather Flight until his retirement in June 2012. His military awards include the Bronze Star for his leadership of a deployed Special Operations Weather Team during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Mr. Strager started his career with the NWS at the Portland, ME, Weather Forecast Office. Early assighments in his NWS career include meteorologist positions at the Center Weather Service Unit in Oberlin, OH, the Grand Forks, ND, Weather Forecast Office and the Pittsburgh, PA, Weather Forecast Office. He was promoted in October 2003 as Regional Aviation Meteorologist at the Alaska Region Headquarters in Anchorage. He became the Alaska Region’s Deputy Regional Director in December 2004 before returning in 2008 to the Pittsburgh Weather Forecast Office as the Meteorologist-in-Charge (MIC). He served as the Pittsburgh MIC until his selection as the NWS Eastern Region Director in February 2010. In March 2011 Mr. Strager came to NWS Headquarters as the NWS Advisor for Science and Service Integration to develop the Weather-Ready Nation Roadmap, which shaped and guided NWS operations into the 2020s, and beyond. Following publication of this document in April 2013, he was asked to lead the Office of Climate, Water and Weather as the Acting Director. He served in that position until he began his most recent assignment as NWS Central Region Director in October 2014.

Listed skills include Meteorology, Weather, Weather Forecasting, Climate, and 44 others.