<p>From this week’s TRIDENT:</p>
<p>The Brigade of Midshipmen will continue to support Navy football in the 2007-2008 season with active presence at eight games.</p>
<p>In a move designed to help Midshipmen focus on their moral, mental and physical development and remove unnecessary distractions from mission accomplishment, the Naval Academy released its policy on brigade attendance at away football games. The policy balances recent changes aimed at increasing unit cohesion, aligning the Brigade of Midshipmen with the fleet, and stimulating leadership opportunities and training for the Midshipmen.</p>
<p>In addition to sending the Drum and Bugle Corps and Naval Academy cheerleaders, the policy allows eligible upper class Midshipmen in a liberty status to travel to away games. Those eligible Midshipmen who wish to attend away games will purchase a ticket from the Naval Academy Athletic Association, arrange their own transportation, and attend in uniform. Those who choose to attend are required to muster with their company Command Duty Officer no later than noon the following day.</p>
<p>Before forming this policy, Naval Academy Superintendent Vice Adm. Jeffrey L. Fowler obtained input and recommendations from the Academy’s senior leadership team, including the Commandant of Midshipmen, Athletic Director and Academic Dean, on the best way to ensure the Academy prepares Midshipmen to become successful junior officers. Several recent operational changes from the Commandant of Midshipmen Capt. Margaret Klein specifically focus on limiting distractions from mission accomplishment, including mandatory meals for the brigade, mandatory study time and fleet-relevant summer training.</p>
<p>According to Klein, ‘‘We are a nation at war, and we do not have the luxury of letting our Midshipmen learn about life in the Fleet and Marine Corps once they get there. They need to be ready to lead Sailors and Marines the day they graduate from this institution.’’</p>
<p>Because the Temple, Rutgers, and Pittsburgh games occur during times where travel would result in missed classes or conflict with mandatory study hours, and because of the distance for the November game against North Texas, brigade attendance to those games will be limited to eligible Midshipmen in liberty status.</p>
<p>The Naval Academy plans to send a large contingent of Midshipmen to South Bend, Ind., for the Notre Dame game in November, and the entire brigade will be present for the Army-Navy game in Baltimore in December.</p>