Captain Taylor Lam is a native of Riverside, CA and enlisted in the United States Coast Guard in 1996 through the Minority Officer Recruiting Effort (MORE) program (now College Student Pre-commissioning Initiative - CSPI) and graduated from Basic Training in Cape May, NJ. Upon completion of his undergraduate studies, he graduated from Officer Candidate School in 1998 at New London, CT.
He recently completed an assignment as a national security fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. In this senior service school program, he researched how the U.S. marine transportation system’s resiliency could be improved given challenges associated with the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Captain Lam’s previous operational units include service as Deputy Commander of Sector Boston, Commanding Officer of Maritime Safety and Security Team (MSST) Los Angeles – Long Beach, Command Center and Enforcement Chief at Sector Miami, Detachment Officer-in-Charge (OIC) and plank owner of MSST Seattle, Law Enforcement Detachment OIC at Tactical Law Enforcement Team North, and Deck Watch Officer aboard USCGC MUNRO (WHEC-724) in Alameda, CA.
His previous staff and advanced education assignments include service as Special Assistant to the 30th Vice Commandant, Coast Guard Fellow in the late U.S. Senator Thad Cochran’s personal staff addressing homeland security appropriations, the Atlantic Area Commander’s staff managing six MSSTs, and attending the College of William and Mary’s Master of Public Policy program.
He is a 1998 graduate from the University of California, Riverside, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology, a 2005 graduate from Boston University’s Master of Arts program in criminal justice, and a 2011 graduate from the College of William and Mary, earning a Master’s degree in public policy. His personal awards include three Meritorious Service Medals, four Coast Guard Commendation Medals, Department of Transportation 9-11 Medal, Commandant’s Letter of Commendations, and other Service awards.
Captain Lam has been married for 19 years to the former Wai Ching Fan of Poquoson, VA and they have two sons, Mason and Aidan.