U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association to Honor 2015 Distinguished Graduates

ANNAPOLIS, Md., March 10, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The United States Naval Academy Alumni Association will honor four Naval Academy alumni at the 17^th Annual Distinguished Graduate Award ceremony on March 27 at 4:30 p.m. in Alumni Hall at the U.S. Naval Academy. The ceremony will be attended by the Brigade of Midshipmen; Naval Academy Superintendent Admiral Walter E. "Ted" Carter Jr., class of 1981, and Admiral Robert J. Natter, USN (Ret.), class of 1967; chairman of the Naval Academy Alumni Association.

Each recipient of the 2015 Distinguished Graduate Award has demonstrated commitment to a lifetime of service and has made significant contributions to the U.S. Naval Academy, the Navy, the Marine Corps and the nation.

The 2015 recipients are: Admiral Henry H. Mauz Jr., USN (Ret.), class of 1959; Admiral Richard W. Mies, USN (Ret.), class of 1967; Admiral James O. Ellis, Jr., USN (Ret.), class of 1969 and Mr. David M. Robinson, class of 1987.

"Our 2015 Distinguished Graduates join an elite group of leaders who are great role models for our Brigade of Midshipmen," said Byron F. Marchant, class of 1978, president and CEO, U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. "They embody the Naval Academy mission and represent an extraordinary spectrum of achievement and service to the Naval Academy, their communities and our country."

• Admiral Henry H. Mauz Jr., USN (Ret.), class of 1959, served in the surface warfare community following graduation from the Naval Academy. He commanded PBR river boats in Vietnam, minesweeper PRIME, destroyer SEMMES and cruiser ENGLAND. Early shore tours included the staff of the U.S. Mission to NATO in Brussels and the CNO's staff in the Strategy and Concepts Branch. He was Chief of Staff to Commander, Carrier Group One and, upon being selected for flag rank in 1983, was assigned as Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe. He then commanded Cruiser Destroyer Group 12, AMERICA Battle Group and CTF 60 during the strikes against Libya in 1986. He was then Deputy Chief of Staff and Acting Deputy for the Commander in Chief at Pacific Fleet Headquarters. From 1988 to December 1990, he was Commander, Seventh Fleet and (in August 1990) was also Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command during Operation Desert Shield. He was assigned as Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Navy Program Planning in 1991 and Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet in 1992. Following his retirement in late 1994, he has served as a senior fellow for the Center for Civil-Military Operations at the Naval Postgraduate School and as president and then chairman of the Naval Postgraduate School Foundation.  
• Admiral Richard W. Mies, USN (Ret.), class of 1967, entered the nuclear submarine community following his graduation from the Naval Academy, where he stood first in his class, and graduate study at Oxford. Command tours include SEA DEVIL; Commander, Submarine Development Squadron Twelve; Commander, Submarine Group Eight; Commander, Allied Submarines, Mediterranean; Commander, Submarine Force Atlantic Fleet; Commander, Submarine Allied Command, Atlantic; and Commander in Chief, U.S. Strategic Command. He served on the staff of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet and as Executive Assistant to the Assistant Chief of Naval Operations (Undersea Warfare); Chief of Staff to Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet; and Director, Strategic Target Plans and Deputy Director, Plans and Policy on the staff of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Strategic Command. He retired from active duty in 2002. In his civilian career, he served as a senior vice president and deputy group president at Science Applications International Corporation, chairman of the Department of Defense Threat Reduction Advisory Committee and chairman of the Navy Mutual Aid Association. He is currently chief executive officer of a private consulting firm, The Mies Group, Ltd., Inc.; chairman of the Strategic Advisory Group for U.S. Strategic Command, chairman of the Naval Submarine League, a member of the United States Naval Academy Foundation Board of Directors and an Athletic and Scholarship Programs Trustee. 
• Admiral James O. Ellis, Jr., USN (Ret.), class of 1969, served as a naval aviator upon graduation from the Naval Academy. A graduate of the Navy Test Pilot School and the Navy Fighter Weapons School, he held command assignments with VFA-131, LASALLE (AGF-3), ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CVN-72) and Carrier Battle Group 5. Senior staff tours included Commander in Chief, U.S. Naval Forces, Europe, and Commander in Chief, Allied Forces, Southern Europe, during which he led U.S. and NATO forces in combat and humanitarian operations during the 1999 Kosovo crisis. He served as Deputy Chief of Naval Operations (Plans, Policy and Operations) and Commander, U.S. Strategic Command. Following his retirement from the Navy in 2004, he served as president and chief executive officer of the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations, an independent non-profit whose mission is to promote the highest levels of safety, reliability and excellence in the operation of nuclear-electric generating plants, from 2005 until retirement in 2012. He also served as a presidential appointee on the President's Intelligence Advisory Board and the Military Advisory Panel to the Iraq Study Group. He currently serves as an Annenberg Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. 
• Mr. David M. Robinson, class of 1987 entered the Civil Engineer Corps following graduation from the Naval Academy. He completed two years of active duty and six years in the Navy Reserve, during which he appeared as a spokesman in Navy recruiting materials. A Navy basketball legend, he took the team to three NCAA tournaments and received the Naismith College Player of the Year and John Wooden College Player of the Year Awards in 1987. He went on to an equally impressive National Basketball Association career. Named Rookie of the Year in 1990, he led the San Antonio Spurs to two NBA titles, was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 1992 and MVP in 1995 and received the NBA Sportsmanship Award in 2001. He was also a member of three U.S. Olympic basketball teams, including the original "Dream Team" that won the gold medal in 1992. He retired from basketball in 2003 and was elected to the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame and the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. He is the founder of the Admiral Group (named in honor of his NBA nickname), Admiral Capital Group and Admiral Capital Real Estate as well as the founder of the David Robinson Foundation and, with his wife, the IDEA Carver Academy. He served as a member of the Naval Academy Foundation Board of Directors from 2001-2009.

For more information, please visit www.usna.com/dga.

Contact: Samantha Richer
Communications Specialist
U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association
[email protected]
703.618.6016

To attend the ceremony or request an interview with an honoree, please contact Samantha Richer (contact details above).

SOURCE United States Naval Academy Alumni Association

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