Panelist Announcement and Introductions

From Captain Norberto Nobrega, USN
Commanding Officer, NROTC Unit

During the 2015 Meliora Weekend, the NROTC Unit will be hosting a “NROTC Alumni Leadership Panel” with a broad spectrum of professional expertise and experience.  The panel discussion will feature former Midshipmen alums, each having served in the Navy or Marine Corps during a different era of conflict in the past half-century.  The panel:

1)  is a great venue for alumni of different graduating classes to interact with successful classmates.  It opens up greater opportunity for dialogue and networking between those with a key common experience. 

2)  affords the opportunity for current NROTC Midshipmen to gain insight into the importance of the alumni body, to begin interaction and networking with those in various fields, and to broaden their perspective of career opportunities.

3)  unequivocally emphasizes that success can be reached by pursuing many paths.  

I am certain that interaction with today’s Midshipmen--tomorrow’s junior officers--will be reassuring to those of you who have already served especially any lessons learned from your experiences that you can impart to Midshipmen.  We have an outstanding group of leaders preparing to take the reins of leadership of our Navy and Marine Corps. We truly hope you can join us for Meliora Weekend and our NROTC Unit events.

The following UR NROTC Alumni will participate in the panel discussion to be held on Friday, October 9 from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m.

James A. Merkle (NROTC Class 1962)

A graduate of NROTC Class of 1962 with a BS in chemical engineering, he entered flight school and was designated a naval aviator. His initial fleet squadron was VA-35 where he flew the A6 Skyraider and deployed to the Mediterranean Sea aboard the USS Saratoga (CVA-60) in 1964. In 1965, he transitioned to jets and joined VA-95 where he flew A-4 Skyhawk. In 1966, he deployed to the Western Pacific aboard the USS Intrepid (CVS-11). With Intrepid off the coast of Vietnam, he flew 130 combat missions and was awarded nine Air medals, a Navy Commendation Medal (with combat “V”) and various Vietnam combat medals. In 1967, he finished his naval service with 350 carrier landings and 1550 flying hours.

In 1967, he transitioned to civilian life and worked at Eastman Kodak until 1978.  From1978-1995, he worked at Allied Film Laboratory in Detroit, Michigan.  He became President of Allied Film in 1993 and CEO in 1995 of the then publicly traded Allied Digital Technologies (AMEX ADK).  Since 2002, he has been a small business consultant.

Ambassador George Ward (NROTC Class 1965)

After commissioning from NROTC Unit Rochester in June 1965, Amb. Ward served in the Marine Corps for over four years in the counterintelligence specialty, including active service in the Republic of Vietnam.  He served in the Marine Corps Reserve until 1978 where he reached the rank of Major.

A Foreign Service Officer with the US Department of State from 1969 to 1989, his assignments included Germany, Italy, and the Office of the Secretary of State. From July 1989 to June 1992, he was the Deputy Chief of Mission in Germany and was actively involved in the reunification of West and East Germany.

In 1992, he returned to the Office of the Secretary of State and served as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Organizations. During this time period, he served as Acting Assistant Secretary for two years.

In 1996, he was appointed the United States Ambassador to Namibia where he served until March 1999.

In April 1999, he became the Vice President and Director of the Professional Training Program at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) in Washington, DC. After his six-year tenure at the USIP, he joined World Vision in June 2005 as the Senior Vice President for International Programs.

Since January 2011, he has been a research staff member at the Institute for Defense Analyses.

Paul Stryker (NROTC Class 1981)

A graduate of the NROTC Class of 1981, Paul was a biology-geology major in the College of Arts & Science with a minor in jazz performance (trombone) at the Eastman School of Music.  Paul served on active duty from May 1981 to December 1991 in Navy Special Operations.  As an explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) specialist, he served with numerous EOD units in various capacities including officer-in-charge (OIC) of EODMU ONE Detachment 301 on USS Tarawa and OIC of EOD Group ONE Detachment North Island.  He served in the Navy Reserve for over 17 years as an EOD officer and served as commanding officer of Mobile Diving Salvage Unit TWO Detachment 201 in Newport, RI and Expendable Ordnance Training Unit 2 in Charleston, SC. In June 2009, he retired from the Navy Reserve as a Commander.

After his transition from active duty in 1991, Paul has worked in various information technology (IT) positions in the civilian sector including Service Delivery Manager for the city of San Diego where he managed a 35-person department of software developers; as the Chief Operations Officer for Rose Clinic/Thermal MD; and, as IT Project Lead for Sempra Utilities leading software development and support projects for SDG&E and SOCAL Gas.  

Since June 2013, Paul has been a senior IT project /program manager with OptumInsight out of San Diego specializing in quality and risk assessment with an emphasis in data and geographic information systems.

Gene Peters (NROTC Class 1987)

A Marine option Midshipman at NROTC Unit Rochester, Gene was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1987 and remained on active duty with the Marine Corps until 1991 and the Marine Corps Reserve until 1996. 

From 1991 to 2005, he worked as a consultant in the private sector for about 14 years before entering the federal civilian service in 2005 as a government scientist.  From 2005 to 2010, he worked with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission before joining the FBI. 

Gene is the Chief of Counterterrorism and Forensic Science Research at the FBI Laboratory in Washington, DC.

Brian Chontosh (NROTC Class 2000)

Brian joined the NROTC Unit as a Marine Sergeant in 1996 under the Marine Corps Enlisted Commissioning Program (MECEP).  He attended the Rochester Institute of Technology as a Mechanical Engineering Technology major and was commissioned in May 2000.

After graduation from The Basic School and the Infantry Officer Course, Brian became a Marine infantry officer.  Brian was assigned as a Platoon Commander in Weapons Company, 3^rd Battalion, 5th Marines. As part of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM, Brian was awarded the Navy Cross for his leadership and courage.  On March 25, 2003, during an ambush while advancing upon Baghdad, Brian aggressively attacked an entrenched enemy position, resorting to using captured enemy weaponry when his M16 ran out of ammunition. He is reported to have killed at least 20 enemy soldiers during the incident.

Brian returned to Iraq during the second half of 2004 as the commanding officer of India Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines. During this deployment, his company took part in Operation Phantom Fury, the second assault on Fallujah in November 2004. During this time, his company was also the focus of a Fox News documentary titled Breaking Point: Company of Heroes.

Prior to retiring from the Marine Corps in 2013, he served as the 8th Company Officer at the United States Naval Academy.