On 1 February, the NAACP bestowed its prestigious Chairman's Award to Vice Admiral Michelle Howard ’82, USN, Deputy Commander of Fleet Forces, for being an exceptional role model from a lifetime of firsts: first female Academy alum to be selected for Admiral and the first African American woman to achieve three-star rank in the military and command a U.S. Navy ship.

The Naval Academy recently hosted a step dance performance by members of the University of Maryland’s Phi Beta Sigma fraternity. Influenced by traditional African foot dances and mid-20th century R&B groups, the dance was introduced in the mid 1900s as competitive schoolyard song and dance rituals by the fraternities and sororities that still perform them today.

“According to the U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM), DoD computer systems are probed by unauthorized users nearly 6 million times a day.” This is one of many reasons why the Academy will “undertake rigorous efforts to provide midshipmen with a foundation of essential cyber warfare knowledge and practical network defense skills.” With the recent news about hackers from China, it could not happen sooner.

“Last summer I provided a Situation Report (SITREP) to offer an additional perspective of events at the Naval Academy and Alumni Association and Foundation to what you read in Shipmate, WaveTops and on www.usna.com. This winter 2013 SITREP provides an update regarding our organization, finances, operations and fundraising.”

“Unmanned killing machines ... the best option ... controversial weapon of choice in a semi-secret war ... a last resort to save lives” ... controversy is raging as people debate the use of drones like the X-47B. Armed drones will be heading for a carrier near you soon, so says CAPT Jamie Engdahl ’90. Drones may also be used by your local law enforcement — the future of drones is here.

Explore the world with us: great locations, programs and new friends just waiting for you. Spaces are still available on many of our second half 2013 trips: Italy, Alaska, Norway, France, American National Parks and much more.

Sounds dramatic and impossible, but it works for us. Cory Ondrejka, whose major was Computer Science and Weapons and Systems Engineering, told Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg that the social networking site was broken and that he could fix it … and he did.

Joe Ehrmann, former Baltimore Colts defensive lineman, addressed more than 1,000 midshipmen about “Being on the Team vs. Being a Teammate,” explaining how most gender definitions in society are based on misconceptions.

North Carolina Congressman Walter Jones has had a 13-year mission to change the name of the Department of the Navy to recognize the Marine Corps. This time, he’s “cautiously optimistic” the latest effort, HR 124, will succeed.

Did you know 30 percent of midshipmen are Eagle Scouts? Seems like a very good place to get some 700+ Boy Scouts together for merit badge classes and mess hall meals during the 26th Annual Scout Jamboree.

The 68th anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima has just passed, and Captain John Frank Gamboa ’58, USN (Ret.), remembers conducting a memorial service in 1984 aboard the USS New Orleans.

Navy women’s basketball coach Stefanie Pemper has been all over and done a lot. The native of Huntington Beach, CA, graduated from Idaho State University, began her coaching career in Alaska and was a successful, three-year assistant at Harvard, before winning 235 games over a decade as the head coach ... (read more).

There is a precedent for brothers winning at the Naval Academy Brigade Boxing Championships. Chuck and Bill Spadafora are two tough Pennsylvanians that each captured crowns in the 1960s. More recently, Tyrell and Jeremy Biggs both accomplished the feat.