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News & Events

2018 Class President’s Report

Posted: 3/2/2018

Classmates,

 The past year has seen many activities that support fellow classmates as well as the institution that brought us all together, the United States Naval Academy. We continue to enjoy our social gatherings which include class luncheons, parties and informal gatherings at our tailgates and travel groups, all of which bring us in contact with company mates, team-mates and those with whom we have served in our careers. These events do not just happen on their own.  Thank you to all who work so hard to keep our events active and fun!

Our involvement as a class includes the support of surviving spouses and families of those we have lost; sadly, these numbers continue to grow. In responses I have received to the death notices I send to you, I hear time and again of the support extended by our classmates. In particular, I’d like to thank your company representatives who often organize that support. As I write this letter, we have lost 263 of the 798 classmates who graduated with us, 33%. We have also lost, to our knowledge, 68 non grads, although those numbers may be understated. We miss them all and they will always remain in our memories.

Our support of the Naval Academy takes many forms, from volunteer activities as Blue and Gold officers, support of Navy athletics and prep school scholarships as Trustees of the Athletics and Scholarship Programs organization, serving  on USNA appointment committees of congressmen, support of the USNA annual Foreign Affairs Conference, and personal donations in support of the ” Margin of Excellence” at our school. We are now into the third year of our five-year class gift project that will conclude just prior to our 60th Reunion in 2020. You will recall that our original target was to raise $1,000,000, with a target of adding $700,000 to our existing Distinguished Visiting Professor of National Security fund, $150,000 to the Athletic Excellence Fund, and $150,000 to the unrestricted Annual Fund.

 I’m happy to report that, as of 2/8/18, our class has, nearing the midpoint of our project, more than doubled our five-year total target. Current cash donations and pledges have reached $ 2,002,646! The distribution is: 

                                       DVP                                 $ 1,081,113   versus target  + 381,113  (+54%)

                                       Athletic Excellence Fund    $ 357,063   versus target  + 207,063  (+138%)

                                       Annual Fund                       $ 564,469   versus target  + 414,469  (+276%) 

While the results to date are just fantastic, additional donations, especially to the DVP would be very beneficial in increasing the positive impact on the Academy. Based on conversations with classmates, at our age, “planned-giving” donations; estate commitments such as including the class gift in your will or trust, or charitable gift annuities that provide current income streams at favorable rates of return are attractive options for additional donations. We are fortunate to have Scott Logan, who has extensive professional experience in this area as a member of our Class Gift Committee. He has been working closely with the Foundation to provide classmates planned giving options that may be attractive to some, and result in additional donations. We will shortly be sending out information on these options to all classmates.

 As a result of the generosity of our classmates, the hard work of our Class Gift Committee and those who called fellow classmates to support our project, we have the funding in hand to begin to fully implement the plan to expand the study of national security strategy while also enabling a small group of exceptional midshipmen, with our funding,  to pursue advanced study in the area. 

 In order to allow the Naval Academy to draw on the funds we have raised to implement our recommended programs, I have signed a revised DVP Gift Agreement.  The Class Gift Committee ( Hank Chiles, Chris Poindexter and Scott Logan) and I have worked with the Naval Academy Foundation to prepare the revised agreement and the Class board consisting of the six battalion representatives, and the class vice president, secretary, treasurer and president have approved  the agreement.

 Changes from our previous agreement are:

 Nature of Program 

The scope of the study of national security strategy will be expanded and blended with related fields such as cyber security, economics, diplomacy, history, etc. Guest lecturers will be available to an expanded group of midshipmen and more broadly utilized to share their experience and expertise.  In addition, selected midshipmen will be given the opportunity to pursue advanced studies in national security.

 Spending Levels

Spending caps will increase from $150,000 in our previous agreement to $200,000/year. Most of the increase, about 80%, will go to cover the changes in the program, and the rest to cover cost increases since the inception of our program in 2005. We are in the early stages of the implementation of our new program and, if additional donations are received, and it is determined that additional spending would be beneficial to our basic purpose and the needs of the Naval Academy, we will have the flexibility with mutual agreement of our class and the Naval Academy to do so. 

Stewardship Reviews 

An annual stewardship meeting will be held to review accomplishment of goals and expenditures. The future needs of the program will be discussed and , if necessary, changes will be made based on mutual agreement.

 Future administration and Funding of the Program 

As our class ages, a provision is allowed for us to ask a younger class to assume the responsibility for maintaining the program through funding and oversight.

Bill Ostendorff, our current DVP, and Matt Testerman, the Political Science Department head, were very helpful in developing the enhanced scope of our program. In anticipation of the successful conclusion of our class gift, Bill has established a new course that started in the fall of 2017 called ” Grand Strategy – A Framework”. The course provided an historic and analytical framework for evaluating and conducting grand strategy, from the perspective of the international community but with an emphasis on the United States. The highlight was the Policy Challenge paper in which students analyzed four major policy issues from the perspective of different countries:

– North Korea nuclear/ICBM program (USA, DPRK, ROK, China, Japan)

– Iranian nuclear deal (Iran, USA, Saudi Arabia, France, Israel)

– Impact of US withdrawal from Paris climate accord (USA, UN, China, India)

– ISIS threat in Syria, Iraq and worldwide (Syria, Russian Federation, Islamic State, USA, Turkey)

General John Allen USMC(Ret), former Commander of the NATO International Security Force and now President of the Brookings Institute gave a great presentation of the topic to Bill’s classes and the Political Science Department Faculty.

This spring Bill is teaching a course on “Congress and National Security”. The course covers the constitutional role of and process by which the Congress produces an annual defense authorization and appropriations bill as well as jurisdiction of the armed services and appropriations committees. In addition to coverage of the legislative process, the course analyzes congressional action on selected security matters (e.g., war on terror, nuclear deterrence and modernization, cyber warfare, aviation procurement and readiness, Navy shipbuilding programs, military personnel issues and other issues that may emerge during the course of the term).

If you are reading this and thinking that:

(a) I wish I had the opportunity to take courses like these when I was a mid! and….

(b) I’d love to sit in on one of these courses now!

Bill has extended an invitation to members of the Class of 1960 to join him in one of his scheduled classes. They are normally held on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the academic year. Hank Chiles, Chris Poindexter, Ron Burdge and I have all taken advantage of attending courses taught by our DVPs and they are a great experience.  If you would like to join a class just send me a note expressing interest and I’ll try to arrange it.

 Bill and Matt Testerman are also planning to arrange to send the first two midshipmen under our program to an advanced study program at The International Security and Intelligence Program at Cambridge University in England for a month this summer. They will be rising 1/c midshipmen who have a great interest in national security and a strong academic record. It is a wonderful opportunity for these midshipmen to engage in study and dialogue with distinguished security experts from other countries. You can get a more complete understanding of the program at www.thecsi.org.uk .  

 Before I close, I’d like to express my thanks to Hank Chiles, Chris Poindexter and Scott Logan for the conceptual changes in focus to our DVP program and being the driving force for bringing them to reality. None of the changes would be possible, however without your involvement and financial support. Bravo Zulu ’60!!!!

 John 

 


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