Mike Stoddard serves as Senior Advisor to VA’s 11th Deputy Secretary, Dr. Paul R. Lawrence. As Senior Advisor, he provides background and guidance to the Deputy on the broad range of VA benefits, health care, and military-to-Veteran transition programs to ensure that initiatives and decisions align with and support the Secretary’s mission—put Veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors first.
Previously, Mr. Stoddard was National Service Director for the Wounded Warrior Project. There, he set the Project’s priorities to honor and empower wounded warriors, enforced accountability, and led a team of 76 professional benefits advocates dedicated to ensuring Veterans and their families receive the benefits and services they have earned and deserve in a manner that honors their service.
From 2019 to 2021, Mr. Stoddard was the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) Veterans Service Organization (VSO) Liaison and Strategic Advisor on VSO and State Veterans Affairs for the Under Secretary for Benefits, responsible for building and maintaining collaborative strategic relationships with VSOs and State Veteran Affairs Senior Executives. Mike worked closely with VA’s Office of Inter-Governmental Affairs and VSO Liaison to the Secretary.
Mr. Stoddard received his Master of Business with a focus on Strategic Leadership from Trident University in 2014 and his Bachelor of Science in Health Administration from the University of Phoenix in 2012. Additionally, he is a 2012 graduate of the United States Sergeants Major Academy, Class 62, at Fort Bliss, Texas.
Mr. Stoddard retired from the U.S. Army in 2019 as a Command Sergeant Major after serving for 30 years as a Combat Medic and the Chief Medical Noncommissioned Officer, and he is proud to receive VA health care and benefits. Mr. Stoddard remains a steadfast Veterans’ advocate.
Career Chronology:
2025 – Present Senior Advisor to the VA Deputy Secretary, Washington, DC
2021 – 2025 National Service Director for Wounded Warrior Project, Washington, DC, and Dallas, TX
2019 – 2021 VSO Liaison and Strategic Advisor to the Under Secretary for Benefits, Washington, DC
1989 – 2019 Served in the Army in various leadership positions retiring in 2019 at the rank of Command Sergeant Major
Education:
2014 Masters of Business with a focus in Strategic Leadership, Trident University, Cypress, CA
2012 Bachelor of Health Administration, University of Phoenix
2012 United States Sergeants Major Academy, Class 62, Fort Bliss, TX