OFFICE OF THE ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL

Mike Culver
Director
Congressional and External Relations

Mr. Culver completed a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Kansas State University, received a Masters of Arts degree in Managerial Economics from the University of Oklahoma, and received a Masters degree in Strategic Studies from the Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. 

After completing the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps program at Kansas State University, Mr. Culver was commissioned as an officer in the United States Air Force and in 1989 was assigned to the Electronic Security Command Headquarters at Kelly Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, where he served as a design engineer for classified electronic surveillance systems.  In 1992, he left the service to become the Superintendent of Education and Associate Pastor at the Valley Hi Church of the Nazarene in San Antonio, Texas.  

In 1994, Mr. Culver joined the Civil Service, taking a position with the U.S. Air Force at Lackland Air Force Base.  At Lackland, he served in a variety of installation engineering roles, including automated building control systems, operations and maintenance of large-scale heating and cooling systems, and energy engineering.  In 1998, he transferred to Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Japan. From 1998 until 2002, Mr. Culver served in a variety of roles at Kadena, eventually becoming the Deputy Base Civil Engineer, the senior civilian engineer, overseeing a staff of approximately 1,800 military and civilian engineers, architects, craftsmen, and support personnel.  In 2002, Mr. Culver was selected a one-year senior professional development program at the Air War College located at Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery Alabama.  In 2003, Mr. Culver transferred to Washington D.C. to join the Headquarters of the Office of the Air Force Civil Engineer.  He served in several roles including Congressional relations, engineering design, operations and maintenance policy, budget forecast modeling, strategic planning, communications, and information technology systems management.

In January 2008, Mr. Culver joined the Office of the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) in his current role as Director of Congressional and External Relations.  He is a Member of the AOC’s Senior Leadership Team and reports directly to the Acting Architect of the Capitol.  In this capacity, Mr. Culver oversees communication flow between the AOC and Members of Congress and their Staffs as well as communication with external agencies and the press.  He is responsible for ensuring timely and accurate communication with Congressional offices.  Additionally, he oversees development of Congressional testimony, reporting requirements, briefings, legislative analysis, and press releases.