Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Washington concluded its Junior Officer (JO) Leadership and Training Symposium at the U.S. Naval Observatory, December 2025. The four-day event brought together Civil Engineer Corps (CEC) officers for intensive professional development that focused on strengthening leadership capabilities and operational excellence.
The symposium featured presentations on topics ranging from root cause analysis and artificial intelligence (AI) to Shore Command and Control (C2) implementation and professional development, equipping junior officers with tools to tackle evolving challenges in naval facilities engineering.
“At the end of the day, you are going to be a problem solver,” said Capt. Daniel Schmitt, NAVFAC Washington commanding officer. “Incremental improvement is the way to get better. The feedback I got and what I saw while here were lots of interactions—super motivated junior officers asking awesome questions.”
Cmdr. Kyle Schlais, the resident officer in charge of construction (ROICC) Patuxent River, coordinated the event with mentorship as a primary focus. “I see my first job as a CEC officer, my primary job right now as a ROICC is mentoring the junior officers in my charge,” Schlais said. “The root cause analysis exercise really gave the JOs a prime opportunity to dig into key problems we’re experiencing and come up with AI-based and other innovative tool-based solutions.”
Junior officers left the symposium with practical takeaways for their commands. Lt. j.g. Joseph Beasley, assistant public works officer at Marine Corps Base Quantico, plans to leverage AI tools to improve requirements processes. Lt. Sam Duffield, a construction manager at ROICC Annapolis, emphasized personal accountability: “You’ve got to earn your rank every day, and change comes from within.”
“I hope that they develop some networks from being around people that they don’t usually get to see every day,” said Capt. Christopher Archer, NAVFAC Washington executive officer. “We had a great slate of speakers from a diverse mission set—some exposure to things you’re not used to and maybe a little bit of learning.”
NAVFAC Washington Operations Officer, Cmdr. Christopher Fairfield emphasized the importance of self-awareness in leadership development. “Knowing yourself and seeking self-improvement is a leadership trait or skill or principle that I want all our Junior Officers to focus on,” Fairfield said. “We really have to look in the mirror and know what are my skills, what are my abilities, and what are the things that I need to achieve.”
The symposium underscores NAVFAC Washington’s commitment to developing leaders who will provide critical infrastructure support to the fleet for decades to come.
| Date Taken: |
01.27.2026 |
| Date Posted: |
01.27.2026 21:42 |
| Story ID: |
556927 |
| Location: |
WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, US |
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11 |
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