Photo By Scott Thornbloom | 200201-N-IK959-4401 NOTRE DAME, Ind. (Feb. 01, 2020) Vice Chief of Naval Operations...... read more read more
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NOTRE DAME, Ind. (Feb. 3, 2020) – The University of Notre Dame Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) hosted their 25th annual Naval Leadership Weekend (NLW) seminar in the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center on campus to establish and grow relationships between experienced senior leadership and midshipmen from across the country, Jan. 30-Feb 2.
“This is our 25th annual Naval Leadership Weekend,” said Capt. Mark A. Prokopius, the unit’s commanding officer and professor of naval science. “I hope the midshipmen will get a diverse perspective and background from our presenting senior leaders and junior officers. They can use this insight to set them towards a career founded on a broader understanding, building upon the knowledge gained in order to become stronger, more efficient leaders.”
The theme of this year’s seminar was “Great Power Competition,” a global operating model which uses dynamic force employment and strategy to build a more lethal naval presence, strengthen alliances and attract new partners.
“We are entering a maritime era for the first time in generations, and in all likelihood, the lion’s share of any future military action for the United States and our allies will fall to the Navy, Marine Corps and our partner navies, and in my opinion, it may fall on your watch,” said Adm. Robert P. Burke, the Vice Chief of Naval Operations, during a keynote address. “Our Sailors have always been the real strength of the U.S. Navy. Keeping our competitive warfighting edge in this era of Great Power Competition will require good leadership of our Sailors.”
The seminar began with a speech from Capt. Jon C. Duffy, the director of the Naval Surface and Mine Warfighting Development Center, Sea Combat Division, who expounded on the theme of Great Power Competition.
“The reality is that our advantage over our adversaries is how well our Sailors are trained and how ready they are to react,” said Duffy. “The shift of strategic focus on Great Power Competition and the possibility of at-sea combat should motivated the midshipmen to relay to their Sailors the importance of, and need for, quality training scenarios.”
More than 170 midshipmen and instructors from 46 universities across the nation attended the event. The Notre Dame midshipmen organized and planned this seminar, which was an opportunity to rehearse future operational planning activities that they will encounter in the fleet.
“The unit began preparing for this event over ten months ago,” said Midshipman 2nd Class Steve Johnston, a student at University of Notre Dame and one of the main coordinators of the weekend. “I have learned a lot about communication throughout the course of this evolution, and I will use this experience to help me as I tackle similar challenges in my future career.”
The seminar speakers included junior officers from each major warfare specialty. The diversified attendance allowed an opportunity for each Midshipman to relate and learn from an officer in their particular area of discipline.
“One of the highlights was the junior officers’ panel,” said Midshipman 1st Class Benjamin Hicks, a student at University of California, Berkeley. “The collective experience of the speakers fleshed out a larger picture of the diverse range of challenges that are unique to each particular warfare community. We can use this insight as a library of experience to draw upon as we navigate our careers in order to make us more adept, prepared leaders.”
Naval Station Mayport Command Master Chief Teri Zehnacker delivered a speech to give perspective and reference to the subject, where he addressed the importance of understanding the people in strong and effective leadership.
“These junior officers will potentially lead Sailors into harm's way, and are charged with bringing them home safely. As a leader, it is important to stay true to yourself, and show the Sailors that you are human,” said Zehnacker. “If they invest energy into learning about the Sailors as people, they can identify more solutions that may help them be successful. The ability to truly listen to all players of their team - the chiefs, leading petty officers and junior sailors - will bring unity and strength to the fight.”
Maj. Gen. Julian D. Alford, the commanding general of Marine Corps Installations East, spoke on the second day of the seminar.
“It's a great opportunity for me to not only to pass on some lessons learned from my career, but also to have some fruitful discussions with them as they prepare to confront the complex global security challenges of the 21st century,” said Alford.
The two-day event format provided both Navy-option and Marine Corps-option midshipmen the opportunity to learn from influential leadership, and also to mingle and network in an inclusive environment with peers.
“The opportunity to network so early in our careers is invaluable,” said Hicks. “The Navy and Marine Corps are very small communities within the big-picture, global environment. Being a senior midshipmen, there are a lot of people here that I have met at other NROTC events. I still communicate with these junior and senior officers as mentors and advisors. I am building this network of people, which I can rely upon, and ask for guidance, even before I am commissioned. Communication and combined effort is an extremely important component to success as the political climate shifts emphasis on joint efforts among branches of the military.”
The NROTC Leadership Seminar is a premiere event for professional development of midshipmen, where participants return to their units around the country and share the lessons learned.
“I hope the midshipmen that attended the weekend were able to interact with the speakers as well as with one another,” said Prokopius. “This event afforded an opportunity for the midshipmen to ask frank and pointed questions to members of the junior officers’ panel, officers who are not far removed from being midshipmen. They can bring this knowledge back to the respective units and perhaps improve some of the subjects we teach in our naval science classes based on this feedback.”
The Navy ROTC program develops midshipmen mentally, morally and physically, to imbue them with the highest ideals of duty, loyalty and Navy core values. The program provides college graduates an opportunity to commission as naval officers who possess a basic professional background, are motivated towards careers in the naval service and have potential for future development in mind and character, so as to assume the highest responsibilities of command, citizenship and government.
NSTC is commanded by Rear Adm. Jamie Sands who, along with his headquarters staff at Naval Station Great Lakes, Illinois, supports 98-percent of initial officer and enlisted accessions training for the Navy, as well as the Navy’s Citizenship Development program. NSTC’s support includes RTC; the Naval Reserve Officers Training Command (NROTC) program at more than 160 colleges and universities; Officer Training Command (OTC) at Newport, Rhode Island; and the Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (NJROTC) and Navy National Defense Cadet Corps (NDCC) citizenship development programs at more than 600 high schools worldwide.
For more information about NSTC, visit https://www.public.navy.mil/netc/nstc/index.aspx or visit the NSTC Facebook pages at https://www.facebook.com/NavalServiceTraining/.
| Date Taken: | 02.01.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 02.04.2020 14:58 |
| Story ID: | 361687 |
| Location: | NOTRE DAME, IN, US |
| Web Views: | 186 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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