From Naval Station Newport Public Affairs
NEWPORT, R.I. – The Naval Chaplaincy School and Center (NCSC) graduated the first class for the Professional Naval Chaplaincy Basic Leadership Course during a ceremony held May 1 inside the Naval Station Newport Chapel of Hope.
“I want to thank Capt. Moses and your staff, you guys have had a huge lift, moving the school from Fort Jackson, South Carolina, back home, up here to Newport, that was tough and I know that you’re still not done, you’re still working a lot on it, but thank you for that,” said Rear Adm. Gregory N. Todd, chief of chaplains for the U.S. Navy, during his address. “You have brought our community back into our Navy fold, we appreciate that and to be back here in Newport.”
The Navy Chaplain School, as it was called 11 years ago, departed Newport as part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure recommendations. The 12 members of Basic Leadership Course Class 19020 signify their successful return to the Navy’s Center of Excellence for Officer and Senior Enlisted Training and Education.
The graduates reported to Naval Station Newport three months ago to begin their military training with Officer Training Command Newport’s five-week Officer Development Course. Following that graduation, they simply picked up their bags and headed across a sports field to begin their seven-week NSCS training.
This type of synergy of training – saving significant travel time along with enabling the newly commissioned officers to become familiar with the sea service teams through their proximity to the Marine Corps Detachment, U.S. Coast Guard ships homeported in Newport, and the many schools located on the base – was one of the driving forces behind the decision to return to the Ocean State.
Capt. Steve Moses, NCSC commanding officer, began the official remarks portion of the ceremony.
“I’m impressed with how you have lived out my vision, our command vision, for a passion for excellence in professionalism, professional naval chaplaincy, professional development, and professional satisfaction,” said Moses. “You have well embraced our vision, and I’m excited about sending you out into the fleet with those values.”
Todd reminded the class of their three callings: The first is the calling of our nation. The second is the calling of our shipmates and, finally, the last is the calling of the Divine.
The graduating class of Basic Leadership Course Class 19020 are:
Lt. j.g. Man-Lung Si Jr.; Lt. Cheol Yi; Lt. j.g. Shawn Downey; Lt. Joseph Seifert (Chaplain Stanley J. Beach Student Leadership awardee); Lt. Joseph Del Valle Jr.; Lt. j.g. Ryan Davis (Distinguished Graduate awardee); Lt. j.g. Justin Brown; Lt. j.g. Andrea Gilkey; Lt. Daniel Morrison; Lt. j.g. Matthew Maestas; Lt. John Kwon and Lt. Anthony Westerman.
The Professional Naval Chaplaincy Basic Leadership Course trains and educates new chaplains as junior naval staff officers and chaplains in the religiously pluralistic context of the United States sea services and provides practical tools that empower Religious Ministry Teams to respond to the pastoral care program needs of commands.
Almost 200 chaplains and 200 religious program specialists (RP) graduate from NCSC residence courses each year to prepare them to deliver professional religious ministry to the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Merchant Marine. Another 600 chaplains and 300 RPs receive professional development training, spanning initial to more advanced courses, annually through mobile training teams.
Chaplains and RPs play a critical role in helping the Department of the Navy achieve and maintain a ready force. Religious ministry and compassionate pastoral care are characterized by cooperation, tolerance, mutual respect, and respect for diversity, as well as an emphasis on understanding the pluralistic military environment. Chaplains and RPs are embedded within commands operating at sea and ashore to ensure 24/7 availability for service members and their families.
For more information on NCSC, visit https://www.public.navy.mil/netc/centers/chaplain/Default.aspx.