by Rick
Burke Navy Office of Community Outreach Public Affairs
PENSACOLA,
Fla. – A 2007 Scranton Preparatory School graduate and Scranton, Pennsylvania,
native was selected as the 2017 officer Military Instructor of the Year (IOY)
for Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) at a ceremony onboard Naval Air
Station Pensacola at the National Naval Aviation Museum Dec. 14.
Lt.
Christopher DeMatteo is an instructor at Submarine Learning Facility (SLF)
Norfolk, where he teaches submarine tactics for submarine crews and prepares
Sailors for local operations and oversea deployments.
DeMatteo
instructs junior officer and submarine surface contact management courses that
cover proper submarine watch standing.
He serves as the high risk training safety officer and oversees safety
requirements for damage control and fire-fighting training.
Rear
Adm. Kyle Cozad, NETC commander, congratulated all the finalists in each
category for their roles in shaping the Navy's future force and for their
contributions to the training and education mission.
"You
represent the best of the very best throughout the domain," said Cozad.
"Each one of you here today has a common theme: a hard work ethic, a drive
to be a better leader, and teamwork. Each and every one of you is a competitor,
and that competitive edge is the thing that makes our Navy better than the
other navies today."
DeMatteo
is 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.
“I
inspire students to learn by relating my own submarines experiences, successes
and failures, to help motivate my students, as well as to prepare them for the challenges
they will face onboard as a division officer,” said DeMatteo. “Not all students learn the same way, and it
is important to identify how your students effectively learn the fastest.”
DeMatteo
said he values the time he has spent at a training command.
“I
have personally grown during this tour by developing a greater amount of
patience in my day-to-day life,” said DeMatteo.
“As an instructor, it is paramount to display patience and understanding
with your students in order to teach effectively. Duty at a training command is one of the most
rewarding experiences one can have in the military. Working with students and helping them
advance in their knowledge and ability is an extremely gratifying job.”
Out
of approximately 8,000 instructors within NETC, DeMatteo was one of two finalists
who competed for the 2017 officer IOY. He received a Navy and Marine Corps
Commendation Medal for his achievements.
The
IOY recognition ceremony concluded a week of activities in Pensacola honoring
the nominated candidates.
“Seeing
the professionalism and dedication of all these outstanding Instructor of the
Year finalists only validates the phrase ‘Fleet Readiness Starts Here,’” said
NETC Force Master Chief Karim Cole during the ceremony. “I am confident that we have the right people
in place to train, guide and get our Sailors ready to man the fleet.”
DeMatteo
earned a bachelor’s degree from the U.S. Naval Academy and is pursuing a
master’s degree from Naval Postgraduate School.
“I
personally aspire to command my own submarine in the future,” said
DeMatteo. “As a submarine commanding
officer, you are personally responsible for the training and proficiency of
your crew. My time as an instructor has helped me develop these key
instructional skills necessary to teach those you lead.”
The
NETC IOY program recognize Sailors throughout the NETC domain who exhibit
sustained superior performance, leadership, mentorship, knowledge and teaching
of military history and heritage, self-improvement, command and community
involvement and exemplary military bearing.
NETC
is the largest shore command in the Navy and is comprised of more than 12,000
military and staff personnel at more than 230 subordinate activities and
detachments in the United States and at remote sites overseas. NETC provides
training and education to more than 31,000 students on any given day.
- - Naval Education and Training Command Public
Affairs
For
additional information on the Naval Education and Training Command, visit the
NETC website: https://www.netc.navy.mil or
http://www.navy.mil/local/cnet/. Follow
us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/netcpao and Twitter @netcpao.