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Subj: USNA Strategic Planning Process
Refer to: Central Region Letter 15-04; October 27, 2004
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PLEASE DO NOT
HIT REPLY TO E-MAIL ME. I WILL NOT GET IT. E-MAIL ME DIRECTLY AT MY USNA
ALUMNI CLASSMAIL ADDRESS, len.wass@1964.usna.com
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Chapter Officers
- Please give this e-mail the widest possible distribution among your members
and other alumni in your area.
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This email was issued by George Watt
’73, President of the Alumni Association. I am publishing it here verbatim.
It is a topic that many of you might be interested in. His message follows:
“This email is being sent to
members of the Foundation Board of Directors, to members
of the Alumni Association Board of
Trustees, to the Campaign Executive Committee and to the EXCOMM of the ASP
Trustees:
Over the next several weeks, the Superintendent will have several
opportunities to
address the volunteer leadership of our
"Extended Brigade." One of the most frequently asked questions of
late has been regarding the status of the Naval Academy Strategic Plan. In
the November issue of Shipmate, VADM Rempt provides an excellent overview
of the strategic plan update process
and his 10 specific focus areas. The article [ "Supe’s Call,"
pages 4 - 7 ] covers two broad strategic areas: 1) Achieving our
mission, and 2) Operating the Naval Academy. He also
makes it clear that this has been, and continues to be, a joint process among
Naval Academy leadership,
NAAA leadership and the
executive staff of the Foundation and
Alumni Association (note: Dick Johnson, Hank Sanford and I are members
of the executive planning team). I have included an
electronic version of the article in
the event you have yet to receive your issue of Shipmate. And, after reading
this, you may wish to recommend it to others in your respective
constituencies. Regardless, I encourage all of you to read this summary of
the process we are now engaged in and
come well prepared to discuss the strategic
plan further at your respective
meetings with the Supe. The vetting process is important. If you have
insights or ideas, VADM Rempt welcomes them. You may send an email to
him at rempt@usna.com.
Thanks for your continued interest and leadership as informed advocates.
Working together, we can assure the current leadership at the Naval Academy and their
successors our moral, mental, physical
and fiscal support of the Academy’s enduring mission for many years to
come.
Go Navy! Beat Delaware!
George P. Watt, Jr., President and CEO
U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association & Foundation
410-263-4448
Ext. 102
247 King George Street
Annapolis, MD 21402
GPWATT@1973.usna.com
Superintendent's Call
By Vice Admiral Rodney P. Rempt '66 U.S. Navy
Our mission is to develop midshipmen morally, mentally and
physically as future
combat leaders for the Navy and Marine
Corps. Our Vision and Guiding Principles serve as our focus for how we
execute this mission. Academy, Alumni Association,
Foundation and NAAA leadership met
recently to discuss our Strategic Plan and take bearings on the Academy's
course for the years ahead. We found our heading true, but felt a few
adjustments could put more wind in our sails.
We took a close look at 10 focus areas where we may be able to
raise the bar further. These fall into two broad categories:
1. Achieving our mission
2. Operating the Naval Academy
Achieving our mission-How are we preparing our midshipmen to
serve as combat leaders in the Navy and Marine Corps?
In order to provide quality officers to the Fleet and Fleet
Marine Force, we found it helpful to view our mission as a continuum of
midshipman development from accession through commissioning. To sharpen our
focus, we are examining five pieces of this continuum: admissions,
leadership and character development, professional training, academics and
our programs for developing midshipmen physically.
Admissions is the first step in our continuum. With the Class
of 2008 as the most
recent example, we are certainly
attracting the best and brightest men and women to the Academy. However, the
process we use to do this has become cumbersome and not
very user-friendly. We want to
streamline the process and make information more accessible to high schoolers
who are trying to become candidates. We also want to find better ways to
focus our resources and efforts on the 3,000-4,000 candidates who are truly
interested in an appointment and have the potential for success in a career
of naval service. Ultimately, we want our admissions process to highlight the
best candidates who can compete for limited space in the Brigade.
Once we have found our new class and brought them to the Naval Academy, we are
charged with developing them into leaders of character. We have a plethora of
leadership and character development
efforts ongoing, but they seem a bit helter skelter. The Ethics Center concentrates
on seminar and workshop experiences; Leadership, Ethics and Law focuses on
our education curriculum; Character Development includes
the Honor Staff, Command Managed Equal
Opportunity and other programs; and the Brigade Striper organization provides
leadership practice. We hope to build more
synergy between these areas and create
a more cohesive package of officer
development initiatives so that we
maximize the opportunities midshipmen have to help
them develop into leaders of character.
We are also looking for ways to raise the bar on professional
training through seamanship, small boat handling, sailing and other skills
that go into developing a competent mariner. All our fourth-class midshipmen
are required to qualify to skipper a Navy 26. About 75% qualified during this
past Plebe Summer and the rest will qualify by the end of Plebe year. We are
exploring what minimum proficiency qualifications should be required by each
class prior to graduation. For example, basic flight skills training for
aviators with the Introductory Flight Syllabus, deck time for our budding
surface warriors on our bridge simulators and Yard Patrol Craft, Leatherneck
for Marines and
mini-BUDS for our seal candidates. We
are looking at these programs and how they
can best prepare our graduates for
success. By the time our midshipmen leave here
they should be confident in their
ability to succeed and motivated to excel in their
chosen community.
Academics also play an important role in preparing our
midshipmen for the Fleet and Fleet Marine Force. We provide one of the finest
undergraduate educations in the country, but we must continually ensure that
our curriculum focuses on providing the education needed to prepare our future
officers for the challenges that await them in our Navy and Marine Corps. The
effectiveness of our naval officers and combat leaders depends on their
ability to process vital information quickly and deal with an increasingly
technical battlefield. To lead and excel in this demanding environment, we
must teach our midshipmen how complex systems fit together, their strengths
and limitations, and how
best to leverage new technology in
combat. Toward this end, we are looking at how our curriculum equips our
midshipmen for their role in an increasingly technical Navy.
Finally, we are looking at the "physical" component
of our mission. How do we best organize our physical education program, as
well as our varsity, club and intramural
sports programs to develop each
midshipman in mind, body and spirit and instill them
with the warrior ethos? There is
an issue of facilities as well; we simply do not have enough physical fitness
facilities for both the desired quantity and quality of our athletic programs.
By comparison, we are supporting 30% more student athletes than Army or
Air Force with only 60% of the space.
How should the Academy provide for athletics
and physical education in the 21st
century? One of the initiatives we're pursuing is obtaining appropriated
funds for a new field house. This facility will take the strain off Halsey
and MacDonough by providing much needed space for physical education,
martial arts, combat training, varsity
athletics, club and intramural sports, and personal fitness.
While we are looking at mission achievement across the board, at the same
time we are also looking at how we operate the Academy.
Operating the Naval Academy-Do we conduct the business of the Naval Academy in
the most effective and efficient way?
To maximize success in our mission, we are examining five areas
of our operation: facilities, human capital, business processes, resource
allocation and assessment. We want to be effective in what we do, but also
efficient so we are good stewards of public
and private funding.
Good facilities are important to any operation. Our Academy is
one of the finest colleges in the country. In order to maintain this
excellence, we are improving on a systematic and deliberate recapitalization
plan. We recently completed renovation of Bancroft Hall, as well as Luce and
Michelson academic buildings. Chauvenet Hall's renovation will mark
completion of our current programmed academic refurbishment
cycle. Next, we are planning to
refurbish our athletic facilities, the museum and yard heritage sites and
administration spaces.
Another priority is Security and Force Protection. Several
projects are underway to preserve our public accessibility while providing
necessary force protection measures. Gate 8 is undergoing modifications to
make it more traffic friendly and more secure.
We are also beginning construction of a
more secure outer perimeter fence as well as
a fenced, limited access internal
security area.
We are also asking tough questions about our human capital to
maximize the effectiveness of our people. We are looking closely at our
organization to make sure we have the right people in the right place.
Professional development of our people is
another area undergoing scrutiny. We
have an incredible faculty and staff and want to ensure they are afforded the
means for personal development to obtain the right skills to succeed.
The next area for review is our business processes. We need to
be as efficient as possible in our routine business. We are looking to see if
we can eliminate
redundancies in day-to-day operations
as mundane as ordering supplies and
processing travel claims. We are going
to take a look at the business side of the
Brigade, including Midshipman Food
Service and Non-Appropriated Fund activities
such as the Mid Store and the laundry.
These operations are doing well, but we are
going to see if there are improvements
we can make to gain more effectiveness and efficiency.
Another area of consideration is resource allocation. Are we keeping
our programs properly funded? Are our financial assets going to the
right place at the right time? In order to remain a
"world-class" institution, we need to find the right mix between
our differing funding sources. Appropriated, non-appropriated and gift funds
must be
applied so they are working to
compliment one another and gain maximum synergism.
Finally, we want to establish a system for assessing how well
we meet the needs of
our Navy and Marine Corps. In order to
continue to provide the best possible leaders to
the Fleet and Fleet Marine Force, we
need to know how our graduates are performing
and what their strengths and weaknesses
are. That way we can continue our best practices, discard what isn't working
and look to improve others.
Make no mistake, the Academy is on course. We are performing
our mission by providing highly effective and capable officers to lead the
Navy and Marine Corps. However, we charted our present course five years ago
and it's time to take our
bearings and see if we should make any
adjustments. Together, Academy, Alumni Association, Foundation and NAAA
leadership are preparing the way ahead. Your
ideas are welcome. Send them to me at
rempt@usna.edu.
Mission: To develop
midshipmen morally, mentally and physically and to imbue them
with the highest ideals of duty, honor
and loyalty in order to provide graduates who are dedicated to a career of
naval service and have potential for future development in mind and character
to assume the highest responsibilities of command, citizenship and
government.
Vision: The Naval Academy is the Nation's premier source of
leaders for the Navy and
the Marine Corps who embody the highest
standards of character and professionalism, and who aspire to lead and serve
their country in peace and war.
Vision for Midshipmen: As Midshipmen we exemplify the highest degree of
personal integrity and ethical behavior.
-We aspire to lead in combat; commit to our personal best; and have the moral
courage to hold others to a high standard of excellence.
-We lead by example from the front, build teamwork, persevere against all
odds, and
strive to win.
-Our focus is a strong technical foundation and critical analytical
abilities.
-We maintain the highest level of physical conditioning and mental toughness;
take complete responsibility for our personal actions and professional
decisions; and treat others with dignity and respect.
Vision for Faculty and Staff: Our Naval Academy is composed of a highly
cohesive
team of military and civilian faculty
and staff.
- We strive to be role models of ethical behavior and conduct for the
Brigade, and we
set these standards through educating
and mentoring midshipmen.
- We are proud of our professional competence and performance; and we are
dedicated to working to successfully
accomplish the Naval Academy's mission.
-We foster a culture in the Yard that focuses on the educational, cultural,
recreational,
and spiritual development of the Naval Academy team, all
aimed at pursuing excellence
in pursuit of our mission.
Guiding Principles-Executing our mission: The U.S. Naval Academy provides the
Navy
and the Marine Corps and the Nation top
quality leaders. We develop the best young
men and women and commission them as
career minded officers.
In order to maintain the highest standards in moral, mental and physical
development of midshipmen, we are guided by our commitment to:
- Work together as a team to develop midshipmen into highly effective junior
naval
officers who are prepared to lead in
combat.
- Set high standards, and strive to excel in everything we do.
- Empower people who work for us to be proactive and achieve their full
potential as contributing members of the team.
- Embrace change by valuing innovation and entrepreneurial spirit.
- Recruit, retain and develop the highest caliber faculty and staff.
- Serve as good stewards of our Nation's investment in this academy,
including donated funds and property.
- Continually strive for personal improvement and professional excellence to
achieve our full potential.
- Take the long view, but act decisively to move ahead with determination.
Guiding Principles-Working together: The true strength of the Naval Academy lies in
the creativity, energy and intellectual
capital of our people. To ensure the Naval
Academy is an enriching and productive
environment we will each strive to:
- Live and work with honor, never compromising our personal integrity and
accepting each other at their word.
- Interact with each other based on facts and truth, discounting rumor and
gossip.
- Treat each other with the dignity and respect we desire for ourselves.
- Stand up for what is right; lead by example.
- Strive for higher standards among ourselves, but tolerate honest mistakes.
- Take responsibility for our actions and accept accountability for the
results.
- Embrace a positive attitude, remaining enthusiastic and avoiding being
cynical.
- Celebrate success and learn from our mistakes.
- Appreciate the contributions from a diverse workforce.
- Foster a safe, healthy working environment that exhibits the highest
standards of professionalism.”
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