Notable Alumni

Rear Admiral David G. Manero, Senior Defense Official, Moscow, Russian Federation
Rear Adm. David Manero is a native of Highland Park, New Jersey. A 1988 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, he was designated a naval aviator in July 1989 and is now a foreign area officer (FAO). He is a graduate of

Rear Admiral Mark C. Montgomery, United States Navy
Mark Montgomery graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1985 with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in History and Political Science, and was commissioned through the Navy Reserve Officers Training Corps program. He subsequently attended Oxford University where he earned a master’s degree in History. He has also completed the Navy’s

NASA Astronaut, Captain Christopher J. Ferguson
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Ferguson received a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Drexel University in 1984, and earned his Master of Science Degree in aeronautical engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in 1991. He received his Naval Aviator wings in NAS Kingsville, Texas in 1986 and was

Rear Admiral Scott Weikert, United States Navy
A native of York, Pa., Weikert enlisted in the Navy in August 1974. After completion of nuclear power training, he was commissioned through the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps program at Drexel University in 1981 where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering. He earned a Master’s

Rear Admiral Joseph F. Campbell, United States Navy
Joseph F. Campbell was born in Lancaster, PA. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1980 and later earned a Naval Engineer’s degree and Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Campbell was commissioned as

Rear Admiral Upper Half Nancy J. Lescavage, 20th Director of Navy Nurse Corps
Since receiving her commission in May 1972, Rear Admiral Lescavage has held numerous senior executive leadership positions. Quickly recognized as an authority on the legislative process and its application to health care, she provided critical liaison with the White House and health care task forces concerning National Health Care Reform

John Lehman, 65th Secretary of the United States Navy
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he received a Bachelor of Science in international relations from St. Joseph’s University in 1964, gained a B.A. and M.A. from Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge and earned a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Lehman served in the Air Force Reserve for three years while

Lieutenant General George Christmas, United States Marine Corps
Christmas was commissioned through NROTC as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve in 1962. He received his diploma at the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Arts degree. After completion of The Basic School at MCB Quantico in Virginia, he was assigned as a platoon leader,

Vice Admiral James A. Zimble, 30th Surgeon General of the United States Navy
James A. Zimble was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He received a Bachelor’s degree from Franklin and Marshall College and earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. He interned at the U.S. Naval Hospital at St. Albans, New York and went to the Naval

First African American United States Marine Corps Officer, Captain Frederick C. Branch
Branch was born in Hamlet, North Carolina, and attended Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte. He then transferred to Temple University in Philadelphia. After receiving a draft notice from the Army in May 1943, he reported for induction to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where he was chosen to become a

Thomas S. Gates Jr., 7th United States Secretary of Defense
Born in Germantown, Pennsylvania, Gates was the son of Thomas S. Gates Sr., an investment banker and lawyer who was president of the University of Pennsylvania from 1930 to 1944. Gates graduated with his Bachelor of Arts in English in 1928. During World War II he served in the Navy,

Brigadier General Robert L. Denig Sr., United States Marine, First Director of Public Information
Denig was born 29 September 1884 in Clinton, New York. He attended St. Johns School in Manlius, New York, and the University of Pennsylvania. On 29 September 1905, he was appointed as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps. After studying at the School of Application, Annapolis, Maryland, in 1906,

Major General William P. Biddle, 11th Commandant of the United States Marine Corps
Major General William P. Biddle, eleventh Commandant of the Marine Corps completed his studies at the University of Pennsylvania in 1875. As a Marine Corps Officer for 38 years, 18 of which were spent aboard warships and in foreign lands, he saw action on land and sea in both hemispheres.

Commodore James Biddle
James Biddle was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he attended the University of Pennsylvania. After graduating, he entered service in the United States Navy as a MIdshipman in 1800. Biddle served in the war against the Barbary pirates. The ship he was in, USS Philadelphia, struck rocks off Tripoli, and

Commodore Stephen Decatur Jr.
Born in Sinnepuxent, Maryland, 5 January 1779. Appointed Midshipman US Navy, 30 April 1798. He served on the USS United States during the 1798-1799 War with France. He captured the USS Philadelphia from the Tripolitans, in the harbor of Tripoli, and destroyed her. In the War of 1812 he captured

Benjamin Stoddert, First United States Secretary of the Navy
Born in Charles County, Maryland, Stoddert was educated as a merchant. In 1781 he set up a mercantile business in Georgetown, Maryland. In 1798 President John Adams appointed Benjamin Stoddert, a loyal Federalist, to oversee the newly established Department of the Navy. As the first Secretary of the Navy, Stoddert

Major Samuel Nicholas, First Commandant of the Marine Corps
Samuel Nicholas was born in Philadelphia in 1744. In 1751 at age 7, sponsored by his uncle, he enrolled at the newly-established Philadelphia Academy (with which the College of Philadelphia, now the University of Pennsylvania, was affiliated upon its founding in 1754). He completed his studies in 1759. On 28
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The University of Pennsylvania’s Naval Reserve Officers’ Training Corps takes pride in its esteemed history and comprehensive training program, aiming to shape the next generation of United States Navy and Marine Corps officers. Be a driving force in shaping the future of our Naval ROTC midshipmen by contributing to our mission and supporting our prospective officers.
Your contributions will directly impact their training, education, and personal growth, ensuring that they are equipped to excel as leaders in the Navy. Your gift helps us with:
- Travel to leadership development conferences
- Travel to Military Excellence Competitions
- Improvements in physical training spaces and equipment
- Honorariums for guests and lab speakers
- Subsidized midshipmen mentor meals
- Senior Sendoff banquet
- MWR activities
Are you a Penn NROTC alum?
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