The U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association Distinguished Graduate Award Selection Panel, chaired by Admiral Jonathan W. Greenert ’75, USN (Ret.), has selected the following alumni as 2021 Distinguished Graduates:
• Kevin W. Sharer ’70, retired chairman and CEO of Amgen, former faculty member at Harvard Business School, commissioning engineer officer of Memphis (SSN 691) and founding member, U.S. Naval Academy Foundation Board of Directors.
• General John R. Allen ’76, USMC (Ret.), former Commander of the NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, the first Marine to serve as Commandant of Midshipmen at the Naval Academy and current president of the Brookings Institution.
• Vice Admiral Derwood “DC” Curtis ’76, USN (Ret.), former Commander, U.S. Naval Surface Force and Commander, Naval Surface Force U.S. Pacific Fleet. He held six other operational commands; established and served as an advisor to numerous non-profit organizations; and is a senior mentor of the Navy Football Brotherhood, longtime committee member of the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association Board of Trustees and a founding member of the Naval Academy Minority Association.
• Janie L. Mines ’80, the first Black woman to graduate from the Naval Academy, former Senior Executive Service Senior Advisor to the Secretary of the Navy, currently an author and senior vice president, inclusion and innovation at Academy Securities.
• Lieutenant Bradley W. Snyder ’06, USN (Ret.), an eight-time Paralympic medalist, including six golds, former U.S. Naval Academy instructor and current Princeton University Ph.D. candidate.
The medal ceremony will take place on Friday, 25 March 2022 at the Academy.