Bruce Latta Luncheon

Bruce Latta, USNA Dean of Admissions, Speaks at Chapter June Luncheon, Plus New Slate of Chapter Board Officers Elected to Serve Next Term

USNA Dean of Admissions Bruce Latta ’78 was our guest speaker at the Chapter June luncheon.

Bruce presented a summary of admissions statistics, issues, and challenges to the approximately 40 alumni in attendance.

He started by reporting that in the 90's applications were relatively low, but increased a good bit in '98 and '99. A bug surge occurred after the 9-11-2001 attack on America.

We received over 12,000 applications this year, which was the same as the post 9-11 class of 2006. We currently have an acceptance rate of about 85% (meaning that 85% of those applicants to whom the Academy makes an official offer of admission, end up accepting the offer). Interestingly, while the decade of the 70's saw only about 65% of in incoming class making it through to graduation day, current classes have been graduating with about 80% of their starting Plebe year numbers. That, even while our academic attrition rate is the highest of all the service academies.

The incoming class of 2011 included 86 prior enlisted personnel. This was quite good considering that the Academy path is a hard one for enlisted people considering the NROTC alternatives. Many are already married, and can stay so in the NROTC program. Also, there is no equivalent of another “boot camp” to go through, let alone an entire Plebe year!

Bruce reported that the Academy is required to bring in candidates from every congressional district. While this promotes diversity, it also creates some problems while trying to accomplish that goal. About 24% of the incoming class comes from diverse backgrounds. One of his current projects is New York City. That area is lacking in alumni support and Blue and Gold Officer support. There are many alumni who work there, but most don’t live there. There are only four BGOs and not one minority among them. The result is that we don’t attract enough candidates from that area.

We also have a problem with our aging BGO ranks. About 25% of our BGOs are over 60 years old. A younger force would be better received by the young men and women we are trying to attract.

On diversity, Bruce mentioned that our enlisted force is now about 40% minority. By approximately 2040 the Asian, Hispanic, and African-American populations will have grown sufficiently to remove white males from the ranks of the majority.

Recruiting efforts are currently targeting the top ten cities, of which Atlanta is one. According to Bruce, more work with the area Boards of Education and superintendents of schools needs to be done. The “branding” of USNA only goes so far and more needs to be done to further the awareness of the Naval Academy in the minds of high school students and their parents.

The Gospel Choir visits, like those to the Atlanta area the last few Januaries, were cited as one of the top recruiting tools that we have. The choir is made up of a diverse mix of Midshipmen and shines a great light on our Alma Matter.

Bruce mentioned also some of the networking connections that have been made through Academy alumni that have turned out to be an invaluable asset in gaining a foothold in some of the hot recruiting areas around the country. Ideas and assistance from alumni is relied upon and needed for successful recruiting.

Many thanks to Bruce for making time in his schedule to bring Atlanta area alumni up to date on the make up and quality of the young people comprising the incoming classes.

Click on a thumbnail image to view a full sized picture.

Bruce Latta starts his presentation.

Bruce assists with the Naval Academy signature wine raffle.

Chapter President Mitch Rowland '71 presents Bruce with a personalized USNA jacket.

New Slate of Chapter Board Officers Elected to Serve Next Term

The following slate of nominated Chapter Board officers was unanimously voted into office to serve the next term from June '07 to June '08:

President – Mitch Rowland ’71 (first term)
Vice President – Erik Busko '88 (first term)
Treasurer – Pete Knoetgen ’77 (second term)
Secretary – Ples Bruce '77 (first term)
Directors (General) – Jim Slemenda ’66 (first term), Jay Wicklund '97 (first term)

Our board members are the "inner workings and hidden mechanisms" that keep our Chapter going and growing!