Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) announced its 2019 Sailor of the Year (SOY) and Military Instructors of the Year (MIOY) Jan. 23 at a ceremony onboard Naval Air Station Pensacola.

Seven finalists for SOY and 10 finalists for five MIOY categories serving throughout the MyNavy HR Force Development domain rose through a number of competitions to represent the top achievers in recruiting and training from a pool of more than 8,000 military members.

The 2019 NETC SOY is Aviation Ordnanceman 1st Class Kimber N. Dominguez, from Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit (CNATTU) Lemoore, California, where instructors produce F/A-18 Hornet naval aviation maintenance technicians, both Sailors and Marines, with initial and career maintenance technical training. She will go forward to compete as NETC's representative in the MyNavy HR domain's SOY competition later this year.

The 2019 NETC MIOYs are:

* JUNIOR ENLISTED – Boatswain’s Mate 2nd Class Brittany A. Parker, Center for Surface Combat Systems Unit Great Lakes, Illinois

* MIDGRADE ENLISTED – Navy Diver 1st Class Christopher M. Carrington, Naval Submarine School, Groton, Connecticut

* SENIOR ENLISTED – Senior Chief Electronics Technician Tamika C. Williams, Training Support Center Great Lakes, Illinois

* OFFICER – Lt. Aaron Van Driessche, Center for Surface Combat Systems Detachment San Diego, California

* NROTC – Lt. Meghan S. Grenier, University of Maryland Consortium, Maryland

Rear Adm. Kyle Cozad, NETC commander, congratulated all the finalists for their roles in shaping the Navy's future force and for their contributions to the recruiting, training and education mission. Cozad presented a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal to each SOY finalist, MIOY, and MIOY finalist.

“As we recognize the outstanding contributions of these individuals, it is also fitting to reflect upon the critical role each of them plays in support of fleet readiness,” said Cozad. “Your hard work and professionalism produce the best Sailors, Marines, Soldiers, Airmen, and Coast Guardsmen in the world. I truly appreciate your personal commitment in meeting the continuous and evolving needs of our Navy and Marine Corps team.”

Dominguez is the learning management office departmental leading petty officer at CNATTU Lemoore, where her leadership of 92 instructors resulted in the brilliant management of 58 courses and the delivery of over 54,000 hours of quality instruction to more than 3,400 students. 

“I am grateful to be a part of the team molding and training junior Sailors in both personal and professional aspects of their career,” said Dominguez. “Serving as their leader and mentor provided me unlimited opportunity to influence every Sailor to reach their full potential and empower them to be quality warfighters within the fleet.”

Dominguez, like many of this year’s finalists, is also qualified as a master training specialist, which is a designation for demonstrating highly effective teaching skills and a comprehensive understanding of schoolhouse management, as well as for taking a leadership role in mentoring, instructing and evaluating instructors and curriculum. As her command’s master training specialist coordinator, she elevated master training specialist designation levels to 73 percent.

The 2019 NETC SOY finalists include:

* Navy Counselor 1st Class Jeffrey A. Bauer, Navy Talent Acquisition Group, New Orleans, Louisiana

* Construction Electrician 1st Class Deanna K. Diede, Naval Education and Training Command, Millington, Tennessee

* Cryptologic Technician (Collection) 1st Class Brittney N. Edwards, Information Warfare Training Command Corry Station, Pensacola, Florida

* Musician 1st Class Zachary N. Ellerbrook, Navy Band Great Lakes, Illinois

* Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Brandon S. Foisy, Center for Security Forces Learning Site Little Creek, Virginia

* Builder 1st Class Ryan J. Laney, Naval Construction Training Center Gulfport, Mississippi

The 2019 NETC MIOY finalists include:

* JUNIOR ENLISTED – Marine Corps Sgt. Nathan D. Doggett, Naval School of Music, Virginia Beach, Virginia

* MID-GRADE ENLISTED – Aviation Boatswain’s Mate 1st Class Keyonnia V. Cook, Naval Air Technical Training Center, Pensacola, Florida

* SENIOR ENLISTED – Chief Retail Services Specialist Seth A. Lowry, Naval Technical Training Center Meridian, Mississippi

* OFFICER – Lt. Cmdr. Veronica Y. Baker, Navy Service Support Advanced Training Command, Virginia Beach, Virginia

* NROTC – Marine Corps Maj. Shane B. Vickers, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee

“These outstanding Sailors and Marines were selected from an extremely talented field of candidates who epitomize the honor, courage, and commitment of military personnel throughout MyNavy HR Force Development,” said NETC Force Master Chief Karim Cole.

The NETC SOY and MIOY programs recognize Sailors throughout the NETC domain who exhibit attributes, such as sustained superior performance, leadership, mentorship, knowledge and teaching of military history and heritage, self-improvement, command and community involvement, and exemplary military bearing.

NETC recruits and trains those who serve our nation, taking them from “street to fleet” by transforming civilians into highly skilled, operational, and combat-ready warfighters, while providing the tools and opportunities for continuous learning and development.

For more information about NETC, visit the command’s website at https://www.public.navy.mil/netc and follow us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/netcpao.

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For more news from Naval Education and Training Command, visit www.navy.mil/.