About Us
The Stockdale Center was dedicated in 1989 in honor of Vice Admiral James B. Stockdale, a member of the Class of 1946. A graduate of the Naval Academy, he served as an officer in the U.S. Navy, mostly as a fighter pilot aboard aircraft carriers. Shot down over southeast Asia in 1965, he served nearly eight years as a prisoner of the North Vietnamese, enduring torture and four years of solitary confinement.
He left the service as its most highly decorated member, having earned 26 personal combat decorations, including the Congressional Medal of Honor.
He is a best-selling author and was the Reform Party candidate for vice president in the 1992 election. Today, he holds the James Bond Stockdale Chair of Freedom and Ethics at the University of San Diego.