Evolution of the Naval Postgraduate School Mission Statement

Transcription

1 SPECIAL COLLECTIONS & ARCHIVES NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL DUDLEY KNOX LIBRARY MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA Evolution of the Naval Postgraduate School Mission Statement SCA Working Document No. 2 Prepared by: John Sanders Special Collections Manager Dudley Knox Library Naval Postgraduate School January 21, 2015

2 SPECIAL COLLECTIONS & ARCHIVES DUDLEY KNOX LIBRARY OVERVIEW This working document provides historical information about the origins of the Naval Postgraduate School and the subsequent development of its mission statement. The paper presents a set of mission statements which serve as examples of the institution s evolution and purpose. It also serves as a ready reference source for researchers who are interested in the organizational relationship between the Navy and the Naval Postgraduate School.

3 SPECIAL COLLECTIONS & ARCHIVES DUDLEY KNOX LIBRARY 1. Executive Summary 2. Annapolis Origins 3. Transformation 4. Migration to Monterey 5. SECNAV Instruction Conclusion TABLE OF CONTENTS

4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Objective This working paper provides a brief overview of the historical development and evolution of Naval Postgraduate School mission statements. Sources The mission statements have been drawn from Secretary of the Navy general orders and instructions, U.S. Navy regulations manuals and various Naval Postgraduate School publications.

5 ANNAPOLIS ORIGINS The School of Marine Engineering and the Postgraduate Department of the Naval Academy The Navy established the School of Marine Engineering at Annapolis in 1909, its first advanced technical educational program. Created by a Secretary of the Navy executive order, this early program evolved into today s Naval Postgraduate School. Twelve officers were selected for the EARLY PURPOSE STATEMENTS YEAR DOCUMENT MISSION STATEMENT 1909 Secretary of the Navy General Order No. 27 establishing the School of Marine Engineering at the Naval Academy 1912 Secretary of the Navy General Order No. 233 transforming the School of Marine Engineering into the Postgraduate Department, U.S. Naval Academy General Order No. 27 does not provide a clear mission statement for the School of Marine Engineering. Paragraph 6 states: The Bureau of Steam Engineering will prepare and submit to the Bureau of Navigation, for the approval of the Department, a curriculum for the school. This will include, in part, the study of design of mariner machinery at the Bureau of Steam Engineering; the study of shop practices and management at such private engineering establishments as may be willing to allow the facilities of their plant for this purpose, and of experimental engineering and testing machinery and other mechanical appliances. General Order No, 233 does not provide a specific mission statement. It gives details about organizational structure and processes and states in Paragraph 9: The courses shall be definite and under such control as to enable the head of the Postgraduate Department to keep fully informed of the employment and progress of each student officer. At the same time, these postgraduate courses shall not be confined to the beaten path only, but, on the contrary, work along original or useful new lines is encouraged.

6 first class and Lt. Cmdr. Milton Reed was assigned as the head of the school. This program expanded in 1912 and was renamed the Postgraduate Department of the Naval Academy. TRANSFORMATION The Naval Postgraduate School, Naval Academy The Postgraduate Department, which was closed for a short time during World War I, was renamed the Naval Postgraduate School after the war. This is also the time period when the Navy issued its first clear mission statements in Navy regulation manuals. EARLY NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MISSION STATEMENTS YEAR DOCUMENT MISSION STATEMENT 1920 U.S. Navy Regulations Article 130, USN Regulations, provides the NPS mission statement: (1) Postgraduate courses of instruction shall be maintained for the advanced education and training of commissioned officers in (a) general professional and allied subjects; (b) technical subjects pertaining to ordnance, mechanical, electrical, radio, marine and civil engineering and naval construction; and (c) law and such other subjects as the Secretary of the Navy may prescribe in order to meet the requirements of the naval service Catalogue of Courses at Postgraduate School and Universities Including Practical Instruction Postgraduate courses of instruction shall be maintained for the advanced education and training of commissioned officers in (a) general professional and allied subjects; and (b) technical subjects pertaining to ordnance, mechanical, electrical, radio, marine and aeronautical engineering. In addition such other subjects as the Secretary of the Navy may prescribe in order to meet the requirements of the naval service.

7 In the aftermath of World War I, the Navy initiated a major study of officer professional development and education, which became known as the Knox-King-Pye Board in honor of its three principal members - Captain Dudley Knox, chairman and Naval War College professor; Captain Ernest King, head of the Postgraduate Department of the Naval Academy; and Cmdr. William Pye, also a professor at the Naval War College. The Knox-King-Pye Board made several recommendations for officer career path development that incorporated ship-shore rotation and a mix of educational programs intermingled with operational assignments. Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels adopted the boards recommendations and took notable steps to advance postgraduate education. While

8 speculative, it is possible that his speeches and professional journal articles were ghostwritten by members of the Knox-King-Pye Board. The Naval Postgraduate School grew slightly during the interwar years but expanded significantly during World War II. It was this latter expansion, along with the strong advocacy of the Navy s top leadership, that set the stage for further postwar growth and the move to Monterey. MIGRATION TO MONTEREY The Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey The Navy used Hotel Del Monte in Monterey on an emergency basis during World War II and, through a series of post-war Congressional acts, subsequently purchased it to provide a campus for an expanding Naval Postgraduate School. An early catalogue carried the mission statement of the 1950 s. NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MISSION STATEMENTS YEAR DOCUMENT MISSION STATEMENT 1954 Catalogue of U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California Academic Year The Secretary of the Navy has defined the mission of the Naval Postgraduate School as follows: To conduct and direct the instruction of commissioned officers by advanced education, to broaden the professional knowledge of general line officers, and to provide such other indoctrination, technical and professional instruction as may be prescribed to meet the needs of the Naval Service.

9 NPS moved in two principal phases from Annapolis to Monterey, with the first component, the General Line School, making the move in The aerology department, forerunner of today s meteorology department, accompanied the Line School. The Engineering School and the NPS administrative command conducted its move between November 1951 and January 1952 and NPS held a formal dedication of its Monterey campus in February Several significant changes occurred in the years that followed and the institution went through multiple organizational changes and formalized its formal faculty research program. In addition, the institution was codified in Title X of the U.S. Code. NPS MISSION STATEMENTS YEAR DOCUMENT MISSION STATEMENT 1961 Study on Organization of the U.S.Naval Postgraduate School The current NPS mission statement, SECNAV Instruction C, became effective in October It is a revision of SECNAV instruction, issued initially in 1986 and revised in The SECNAV instruction defines the mission and an associated OPNAV instruction (OPNAV Instruction C) provides implementation guidance. To conduct and direct the Advanced Education of commissioned officers, to broaden the professional knowledge of general line officers, and to provide such other indoctrination, technical and professional instruction as may be prescribed to meet the needs of the Naval Service. In support of the foregoing, to foster and encourage a program of research in order to sustain academic excellence.

10 SECNAV Instruction 1524 YEAR DOCUMENT MISSION STATEMENT 1986 SECNAV Instruction 1524 (May 23,1986) The Naval Postgraduate School exists for the sole purpose of increasing the combat effectiveness of the Navy and Marine Corps. It accomplishes this by providing post-baccalaureate degree and non degree programs in a variety of subspecialty areas not available through other educational institutions. NPS also supports the Department of the Navy through the continuing programs of naval and maritime research and through the maintenance of an expert faculty capable of working in, or as advisors to, operational commands, laboratories, systems commands, and headquarters activities of the Navy and Marine Corps. Footnotes 1 Special Collections & Archives, Dudley Knox Library 2 Department of the Navy, Available on Internet Archive 3 NPS Catalog, (Reference Section of Dudley Knox Library) 4 SECNAV Instruction C, Available on Dudley Knox Library digital repository, Calhoun, SECNAV Instruction C (October 21, 2014) hdl.handle.net/10945/43579 Provide relevant and unique advanced education and research programs to increase the combat effectiveness of commissioned officers of the Naval Service to enhance the security of the United States. In support of the foregoing, and to sustain academic excellence, NPS and the DON foster and encourage a program of relevant and meritorious research which both supports the needs of the Navy and the DoD while building the intellectual capital of the NPS faculty.

11 CONCLUSION The Navy has made a significant investment in the development of a professional officer corps with the establishment of the Naval Postgraduate School. The initial graduate education programs, created at Annapolis, operated under Secretary of the Navy executive orders. This was given a more formal structure after World War I when the institution s mission was codified in Navy regulations. Subsequent post-world War II Congressional legislation led to the school s move from Annapolis to Monterey. NPS now operates under authorization from Title X of the U.S. Code and SECNAV instructions and operational guidance from OPNAV instructions. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS & ARCHIVES NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL DUDLEY KNOX LIBRARY MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA