[1] From 1999 to 2001, Shuford coordinated the Navy's legislative efforts in the United States Senate, and was selected to flag rank in this assignment.

He also received master's degrees in public administration from Harvard University with a concentration in finance and in national security studies and strategy from the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, from which he graduated in 1991 with highest distinction.

[1] From 12 August 2004 to 6 November 2008, Shuford served as the 51st President of the Naval War College, overseeing senior education and wargaming for the Navy.

He led the college as it played the key role in designing the process for establishing a new national maritime strategy and in providing the geostrategic analysis to support it.

He also engaged in extensive diplomacy to establish an international network of naval colleges that could collaborate on the study of maritime security issues.