Anchors aweigh: Stanford graduates commissioned as naval officers

One day after graduating from Stanford with bachelor's degrees, LOURDES ACOSTA and KATHARINA BROWN celebrated their completion of the Naval ROTC program and their commissioning as naval ensigns at a ceremony in the Tresidder Oak Lounge. The two were lauded for their perseverance during their four years as Stanford students and ROTC participants. Brown and Acosta had to travel to UC Berkeley several days a week to take such Naval ROTC classes as drills, physical training and naval science. Among the 60 or so people attending Monday's commissioning ceremony was PROVOST PERSIS DRELL , who taught Acosta. Also in attendance were two 1974 Stanford alumni who were members of the last naval cohort to graduate when ROTC was officially recognized at Stanford. Today, Stanford has cross-enrollment agreements for ROTC with the Navy and Marine Corps program at UC Berkeley, the Army ROTC program at Santa Clara University and the Air Force ROTC program at San Jose State University. In 2011, the Stanford Faculty Senate approved a process for inviting ROTC back to campus after a nearly 40-year absence.