Sailors assigned to Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Mason (DDG 87) attended the graduation of five Mason officers during a ceremony for the Surface Warfare Officers School's Basic Division Officer's Course (BDOC), March 3.

BDOC is designed to give newly-commissioned ensigns the foundational knowledge and skills needed to make them more effective in leading and managing their divisions. The course reinforces concepts in navigation, seamanship, shiphandling, administration, engineering, damage control, and leadership which are necessary in expanding Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson's "A Design for Maintaining Maritime Superiority."

BDOC places emphasis on hands-on instruction and the use of technology such as the Conning Officer Virtual Environment (COVE) simulators, which can simulate all ship types in the U.S. Navy and provides officers the opportunity to practice shiphandling underway and in ports worldwide. The course also offers state-of-the-art electronic classrooms which allow for computer-based training (CBT) for more advanced qualifications.

"If you've never seen a ship or if you've never been in the Navy, it's good for you in many ways," said Ensign Susan Funk of Weatherly, Pennsylvania, assigned to Mason's engineering electrical division. "BDOC is very in depth and it was good introduction to the 'nitty-gritty' of being a division officer (DIVO)."

Funk explained how the introductory concepts taught in BDOC allow new division officers the "foundation to develop as better leaders."

The nine-week course is typically an intermediate stop for the new officers before reporting to their respective ships, but for the five ensigns assigned to Mason, the course came after a rigorous and demanding combat deployment to the U.S. 5th and 6th fleet areas of operation.

"These five ensigns performed superbly on a combat deployment," said Cmdr. Stephen W. Aldridge, Mason's commanding officer. "I've seen them all develop into tough, young leaders who have faced adversity head-on."

"Our timeline was odd because you usually go back to the ship after BDOC and apply what you learn," explained Ensign Justin McMurtrie of Aiken, South Carolina, assigned to Mason's combat gunnery division. "For us, we had to learn on the go and then come back to the course with some real experiences. Having gone through deployment and having seen a good bit of it, the information made more sense to me and I was able to assess what I did right and what I need to work and focus on."

"Going on deployment was good because you saw a lot of the real-world aspect for what is simulated in class," added McMurtrie. "BDOC also teaches you how to function as a division officer, so getting all that hard information was good."

Capt. William S. Switzer, commodore of Destroyer Squadron 26, was the keynote speaker during the graduation ceremony in which he spoke about BDOC being the beginning of strengthening and broadening the Navy's leadership development by focusing on operational excellence and developing a strong character. He spoke about the need for "toughness" in newly-commissioned officers, citing Mason as the example for demonstrating excellence in all aspects of surface warfare.

"The strong team of instructors at BDOC are critical in further developing young officers," added Aldridge. "Also important are the bonds and relationships formed between students in class as they share early challenges in their careers and learn from each other."

"BDOC is very broad, yet focused on the [Surface Warfare Officer Personnel Qualification Standard]," said McMurtrie, "but there are specific areas they go over like DIVO fundamentals which teach you how to take care of the administrative portion of your division, how to check maintenance, and how to take care of your Sailors; it was something that I didn't know a lot about coming into deployment."

Mason, part of Naval Surface Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet (SURFLANT), is currently at its homeport of Naval Station Norfolk after returning from a seven-month deployment in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of operation.

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