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News & Events

2019 Class President’s Report

Posted: 2/18/2019

Classmates –

60th REUNION

As plans are developing for our 60th Reunion, it is timely to send my annual report to the class. Pete Chabot and Ed Mangan, Co-Chairs of the reunion, have provided the latest gouge to bring you up to date, including the latest schedule of events, contact information for the members of the reunion committee, and an important request that you update your contact information on the Alumni Association website. We’re looking forward to a great gathering of the class!

CLASS GIFT

Our Class Gift project concludes with our 60th Reunion, but we have, to date, raised $ 2,230,372 in cash and pledges, far exceeding our conservative target of $ 1,000,000. The breakdown is:

Target                    Amount Raised

DVP                        $ 700,000                    $ 1, 190,036

Annual Fund           $ 150,000                    $     666,061

Athletic Excellence $ 150,000                    $     374,275

In the past year, we have raised additional donations of $228,000 towards the class gift. All of the areas chosen are worthy areas for additional donations, but It would be most helpful to direct donations toward the DVP, funds supporting the Class of 1960 Distinguished Visiting Professor of National Security. It would help us extend the life of our endowment  and provide for an expansion of support for National Security studies.While the areas designated in our Class Gift are by far the most popular among our classmates based on statistics, during the last decade, 51 different areas of interest were chosen by classmates for their donations. Sport specific donations like crew, track and field, baseball, sailing were chosen. Donations also were made to studies of leadership, ethics and Cyber, the Jewish Chapel, music, etc. In fact, since 2011, over $ 4.6 M in total have been given to support the Naval Academy by our class. Thank you for your very generous support!

DVP

As I mentioned in last year’s report, the DVP program is fully funded for the near term. I have attached a file discussing one part of the program, the funding for sending two selected midshipmen to Cambridge University in England for an international course on national security issues. The experience was outstanding and two additional midshipmen have been selected for attendance this coming summer.

Our DVP, Bill Ostendorff, is teaching a course this year on the historic and analytical framework as a foundation for understanding grand strategy. “Grand strategy is a coherent statement of the state’s highest political ends to be pursued globally over the long term. Its function is to prioritize among different domestic and foreign policy choices and to coordinate, balance, and integrate all types of national means – including diplomatic, economic, technological and military power – to achieve the articulated ends.”

Bill has again invited members of ’60 to attend classes. Classes are held on Tuesday and Thursday of the academic year. Let me know if you would like to attend and I will work out with Bill.

CLASSMATE DEATHS

We lost 25 classmates in 2018 bringing the known loss of grads and non-grads to 351. We have lost 282 of the 798 who graduated with us, 35%. It is always difficult to accept that our ranks are thinning, but the spirit shown at our class events is strong!

I would like to express a personal thank you to all of those who work so hard to support our class activities. You are the glue that keeps our bonds strong.

Beat Army!

John


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