Dr. Johnathan Gajados

Dr. Johnathan Gajdos currently serves as the Provost at the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA). Prior to joining the Department of Transportation, Dr. Gajdos spent more than fifteen years in administrative and teaching roles at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center (DLIFLC), the primary language education and training institution for the U.S. military. Most recently, he served as Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education, where he oversaw six schools providing full-time, intensive foreign language training in nine languages. His prior assignments at DLIFLC include serving as dean of the Persian Farsi School, academic advisor at the Institute’s Washington, D.C. office, and teaching team leader and instructor in the German program (earning the DLIFLC Civilian Instructor of the Year award from the Kiwanis Club of Monterey in 2013. In addition to his DLIFLC teaching experience, Dr. Gajdos has taught at Monterey Peninsula College, the University of Iowa, and Technische Universität Dortmund, Germany.

He has earned a Ph.D. and M.A. in Germanic linguistics from the University of Iowa; a Bachelor’s in German from Georgetown University; and a Graduate Certificate in Public Administration from the University of North Dakota. A graduate of the Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) Intermediate Leader Development Program, he has completed Army Management Staff College (Ft. Leavenworth, KS) intermediate and advanced courses as well as Wharton Online’s Leadership and Management Certificate program.

Dr. Gajdos is committed to shared governance to improve organizational effectiveness. During graduate school, he was elected President of the University of Iowa’s Graduate Student Senate. While in the German program at DLIFLC, he was active in faculty organizations, serving on the DLIFLC-wide Academic Senate and as president of the European & Latin American School Faculty Advisory Council. More recently, he was a member of the External Advisory Board of the University of Iowa Graduate College (2016-2021). While still in the classroom, Dr. Gajdos was the recipient of DLIFLC Civilian Instructor of the Year award from the Kiwanis Club of Monterey. He is a two-time recipient of the Army Civilian Service Commendation Medal and in 2025 was awarded the Army Meritorious Civilian Service Medal.