SAN DIEGO – Chief Petty Officer Laura Clarke, a native of Bucaramanga, Colombia, was insprired to join the Navy.
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| Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jackson Brown |
“I’m the only member in my family to serve in any military,” said Clarke. “I was curious at first to join, but also wanted the opportunity to travel and reap some of the benefits. My goal was to do four years and be done and here I am so many years later.”
Now, 16 years later, Clarke is stationed with the Navy Service Support Advanced Training Command (NSSATC) San Diego, a new training command tasked with improving fleet readiness.
“It's exciting for the ability to work with all different rates, which you don't always have the opportunity to do,” said Clarke. “We also have more flexibility on how to execute meeting course guidelines.”
Clarke, a 2003 graduate of Timber Creek High School in Orlando, Florida, is a Navy counselor at the training center located in San Diego.
“I'm a course supervisor for the command career counselor course,” said Clarke. “Part of my responsibilities are to ensure that all students meet requirements for the course, maintaining their records for the course and providing feedback to the course manager about the courses.”
Clarke credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned in Bucaramanga.
“I learned about responsibility,” said Clarke. “My mom allowed us to have control of what we were doing, but we were also responsible for the consequences of our decisions. Making those decisions and being responsible at a young age helped me in the Navy.”
NSSATC was established in March 2019. It develops and delivers advanced education and training opportunities that build personal, professional, and service support competencies to achieve fleet readiness. Headquartered at Naval Air Station Oceana, Dam Neck Annex, Virginia, the command executes training at 10 globally dispersed learning sites with military and civilian instructors and staff personnel.
NSSATC is responsible for Advanced Administration courses, Advanced Logistics courses, Navy Instructor Training Course (NITC), Command Career Counselor (CCC), Command Managed Equal Opportunity (CMEO) Manager, Drug and Alcohol Program Advisor (DAPA), and Alcohol and Drug Abuse for Managers and Supervisors.
There are many reasons to be proud of naval service, and Clarke is most proud of being promoted to chief petty officer.
“It's like one of the biggest recognitions you can get in the Navy,” said Clarke. “Knowing that you worked hard enough and all your efforts have been recognized keeps you moving forward.”
A key element of the Navy the Nation needs is tied to the fact that America is a maritime nation, according to Navy officials, and that the nation’s prosperity is tied to the ability to operate freely on the world’s oceans. More than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water; 80 percent of the world’s population lives close to a coast; and 90 percent of all global trade by volume travels by sea.
“Our priorities center on people, capabilities and processes, and will be achieved by our focus on speed, value, results and partnerships,”said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer. “Readiness, lethality and modernization are the requirements driving these priorities.”
Now, 16 years later, Clarke is stationed with the Navy Service Support Advanced Training Command (NSSATC) San Diego, a new training command tasked with improving fleet readiness.
“It's exciting for the ability to work with all different rates, which you don't always have the opportunity to do,” said Clarke. “We also have more flexibility on how to execute meeting course guidelines.”
Clarke, a 2003 graduate of Timber Creek High School in Orlando, Florida, is a Navy counselor at the training center located in San Diego.
“I'm a course supervisor for the command career counselor course,” said Clarke. “Part of my responsibilities are to ensure that all students meet requirements for the course, maintaining their records for the course and providing feedback to the course manager about the courses.”
Clarke credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned in Bucaramanga.
“I learned about responsibility,” said Clarke. “My mom allowed us to have control of what we were doing, but we were also responsible for the consequences of our decisions. Making those decisions and being responsible at a young age helped me in the Navy.”
NSSATC was established in March 2019. It develops and delivers advanced education and training opportunities that build personal, professional, and service support competencies to achieve fleet readiness. Headquartered at Naval Air Station Oceana, Dam Neck Annex, Virginia, the command executes training at 10 globally dispersed learning sites with military and civilian instructors and staff personnel.
NSSATC is responsible for Advanced Administration courses, Advanced Logistics courses, Navy Instructor Training Course (NITC), Command Career Counselor (CCC), Command Managed Equal Opportunity (CMEO) Manager, Drug and Alcohol Program Advisor (DAPA), and Alcohol and Drug Abuse for Managers and Supervisors.
There are many reasons to be proud of naval service, and Clarke is most proud of being promoted to chief petty officer.
“It's like one of the biggest recognitions you can get in the Navy,” said Clarke. “Knowing that you worked hard enough and all your efforts have been recognized keeps you moving forward.”
A key element of the Navy the Nation needs is tied to the fact that America is a maritime nation, according to Navy officials, and that the nation’s prosperity is tied to the ability to operate freely on the world’s oceans. More than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water; 80 percent of the world’s population lives close to a coast; and 90 percent of all global trade by volume travels by sea.
“Our priorities center on people, capabilities and processes, and will be achieved by our focus on speed, value, results and partnerships,”said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer. “Readiness, lethality and modernization are the requirements driving these priorities.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Clarke and other sailors and staff know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes, serving as a key part of the Navy the Nation needs.
“I joined right out of high school so the Navy is all I really know here in the United States,” said Clarke. “Getting to know the people and experiencing things is something that I 'll always have and no one can take away from me. Being able to pitch in to the overall mission of the Navy everytime I put on the uniform is something I hold very near and dear to my heart.”
“I joined right out of high school so the Navy is all I really know here in the United States,” said Clarke. “Getting to know the people and experiencing things is something that I 'll always have and no one can take away from me. Being able to pitch in to the overall mission of the Navy everytime I put on the uniform is something I hold very near and dear to my heart.”