The vaccination event at NATTC was part of Naval Hospital Pensacola’s beginning stages of vaccine delivery to commands in the Pensacola area.

The Department of Defense (DoD) is taking a prioritized, phased approach for administering the vaccine to strengthen the DoD’s ability to protect its people, maintain readiness, and support the national COVID-19 response. The vaccine is being administered on a voluntary basis throughout the DoD.

“It’s not only helping myself but others with getting to herd immunity,” said Aviation Electrician's Mate 1st Class Jesus Rosadorivera, a NATTC instructor who received the shot. “The more people who get it, the better we protect each other.”

NATTC graduates approximately 15,000 Navy and Marine students yearly. The largest part of this student body is comprised of enlisted personnel attending "A" schools designed to provide them with the entry-level knowledge and skill levels required to perform as technicians.

“I decided to do it to help protect my family because I do have a newborn at home,” said another NATTC instructor, Marine Staff Sgt. Christopher Cox. “This will also help protect my students. While we take measures to protect them while they are here, I want to do my own part to help keep doing that.”

Rear Adm. Pete Garvin, commander, Naval Education and Training Command (NETC), along with NETC’s Force Master Chief Matthew Harris, were part of the group to receive their first shot at NATTC. As mission-essential personnel, they wanted to show their confidence in the vaccination program and encourage Sailors and their families to get vaccinated as the vaccine becomes available to them.

“I couldn’t be more proud of the entire Force Development team,” said Garvin. “Their perseverance throughout the many challenges presented by 2020 is truly inspiring. Part and parcel of keeping the supply chain running is protecting our shipmates and ourselves from COVID. This vaccination is a key part of that protection as well as continuing to follow the guidance and measures in place. Getting new service members, both officers and enlisted, safely to and through training is an imperative as we continue to navigate the pandemic. The availability of the vaccine is a promising next step in ensuring we continue to safeguard our people and achieve our mission.”

The MyNavy HR Force Development team has been implementing a variety of measures from the beginning to combat the impact of the virus, from quarantining recruits before they go to boot camp to mitigating risks through data-driven approaches at NETC’s training commands and sites, like NATTC. While the Navy’s response to COVID-19 continues to adapt and evolve, the ongoing arrival of the vaccine at military treatment facilities now gives service members the opportunity to get the vaccine.

“When the vaccine is available for you to take, you should strongly consider getting it to protect yourselves, your families, shipmates, and your communities,” said Harris. “Our people are what drives our Navy, and whether you are a recruiter, a recruit division commander at boot camp, a recruit, a part of a staff, an instructor, or a student wherever we train, you can make a difference in lowering the public health risks this pandemic poses.”

As part of the MyNavy HR Team, NETC is the largest shore command in the Navy with more than 19,000 military and staff personnel at more than 1,640 subordinate activities, sites, districts, stations, and detachments throughout the world. NETC and the MyNavy HR Force Development organization have full ownership of the entire “Street to Fleet” process, recruiting civilians, and through world-class training, transforming them into combat-ready warfighters ready to meet the current and future needs of the fleet.

More information on NETC is available at https://www.netc.navy.mil. Follow @MyNavyHR on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.