USMMA path to USCG

jasperdog
Sun, 28 Feb 2010 12:13:54 +0000

USMMA2009: As Deepse notes, you are clearly entitled to your opinions and to voice them. I would point out that as you have indicated all your statements are your opinions and backed at most by what staticians and researchers would refer to as anaecdotal.

In other words do you have any data what so ever to back your statements. I’ll take the liberty of answering that - most probably not. First off, my understanding is that the data for the entering Classes of 2012 and 2013 reflects HIGHER academic standards than recent past, all be it, only slightly. That data being average graduating class standing and standardized test scores. Further, over the past thtree years there has been a shift again minor where the largest number of appointments by state has shifted where as New York used to be number 1 for the Classes of 2012 and 2013 the largest number of appointments were given to entering Plebe Candidates from Maryland and Virginia. In any case the entering students from the top five state sources are all from states where the secondary education systems and quality of graduates are regarded as very and and that has been so for as along as I can remember - which is now 27+ years. I would sure like to see the data but for numerous good reasons the Academy Admissions Staff usually doesn’t go out of their way to issue it and certainly doesn’t do so before the data has been fully vetted and verified.

You make some interesting statements that I as a graduate approaching my 30th reunion just don’t share or agree with based on my own anecdotal observations. My disagreements with you are:

1) “It seems to me that over the course of the last 4 years or so, there has been a stronger push to “recruit” more athletes to KP rather than students with strong academic backgrounds. A lot of these students have no idea what they are getting themselves into, and end up dragging down the rest of the class.”

Your characterization is wrong headed. Good leaders are well rounded. For example, the Validictorian of my graduating class was a starting pitcher and four year letterman on the Academy baseball team. One of my classmates who was a co-captain of the soccer team was a “dualie” - took 23+ credit hours every 10+ weeks, graduated with honors with BOTH Deck and Engine degrees and liscences and went on to a very successul career as a key leader at what is today a $500+M engineering firm - he was one of the original ~25 employees and remains on the Board of Directors today. I could go on but suffice it to say these men and women were all the definition of scholar athletes in the truest sense of the word then and are even better leaders because of their well rounded perspectives on life today. They most certainly didn’t drag down our class and I suspect the athletes in each of the current class don’t drag it down either Academically or Regimentally but rather are the real leaders many if not most of the members of the Regiment of Midshipmen look to and follow.

2) The idea that more failouts and/or setbacks is a reflection of lower standards is actually counter-intuitive. The raising of standards would, could and likely does increase the number of midshipmen failing out. Further I assure you if you graduated in the Class of 2009 and did so in four years (e.g. entered KP in July 2005) your graduating Class and the ones 4 years on either side of it had far, far more setbacks in it and entering students who were setback then those of us who gradutated in the 1977 - 1987 era, and we indeed as Deepsea alludes felt and often feel the rigor of the program needs to be returned. It was not uncommon, at all for our classes to have a washout rate of 33% between the day we reported for Indoctrination and Graduation day. My Class 1982 had some very high entering test scores, etc. and we had a better than average graduation rate - we had ~310 report and 254 graduates, of the 254 graduates less than 10 were setbacks from the entering Class of 1981, further back in those days multiple year setbacks were basically unknown, for any reason. Oh and another “back in the day” we never had a Midshipman Regimental Officer of any position who was a setback, can you say the same about 2009? My point is I do not believe the number of setbacks has neither decreased or increased on average between the Classes of 2005 and today. I do think it increased and the policy was that the view setbacks were a smart thing from a return on investment perspective and the number of setbacks offered increased slowly between 1998/1999 and ~2005/2006, but my understanding this is getting looked at again in view of current data.

3) Lag courses or the ability to “retake” a course has to my knowledge been a standard practice and a smart thing for the Government and the Academy to do since before I attended classes there in 1978 - 1982. Further while I never had to take a lag class or retake any courses, I think they are a good thing especially for fourth courses and for third class engineering course. That’s when you as a young person are figuring it all out and a “second chance” where you have to take an even higher than normal courseload during a trimester doesn’t seem like lowering standards or risking the Academy will graduate slackers in any way.

4) If you don’t have much pride about having graduated from KP, I truly feel sorry for you, but I have to be me and ask… What did this feeling just happen overnight the day after you graduated? I doubt it. If it grew over time and goes back to before you started second class year why didn’t you just leave and go somewhere else? Of course you can always ask for your money back, I mean why shouldn’t you feel disappointed and cheated, you only got a solid four year degree easily worth over $150,000 - by ANY MEASURE - for an overall cost of less than $20,000 “all in.”

4) I don’t like to catagorize “Classes” because it’s silly. Every KP graduate is different and even in “bad Classes” there are great people and in fact there really aren’t “bad Classes” - there are people who take a lot longer to mature and understand what their Kings Point experience has given them, I’ll just put you in that group and hope in a sort while something will happen that shows you just how good and valuable education you got and how good so many members of the Classes following you are.