2021-22 Impact Report: MAF

ACTIVITIES FUND

MIDSHIPMAN ACTIVITIES FUND

SUMMARY

The United States Naval Academy offers an environment designed for midshipmen to develop their leadership through extracurricular activities (ECAs), club sports, professional organizations and academic groups, both on and off the Yard. These activities have proven instrumental to the development of the Brigade.

The Midshipman Activities Fund (MAF) is designed to provide funding for activities that would not otherwise exist at the individual, company or Brigade level. The MAF functions in a similar manner to campus support organizations at civilian institutions, providing resources to student and recreational organizations that enhance the daily lives of the midshipmen. While most other

universities have a dedicated philanthropic division focused on raising private funds in support of key initiatives such as these, the Naval Academy does not, and therefore relies on the MAF to sustain these programs. Despite COVID-19’s impact on these activities, the Naval Academy has been able to provide support for the midshipman experience across the Brigade through the Midshipman Activities Fund. Additionally, this fund allows for the flexibility necessary to support the evolving needs of the Brigade in our current environment and beyond.

We are pleased to share highlights from the 2021–2022 academic year:

Men’s and Women’s Glee Club

MIDSHIPMAN ACTIVITIES FUND— SPONSORED ACCOMPLISHMENTS

ATHLETIC ACTIVITIES

The Naval Academy features 16 club sports that compete on the intercollegiate stage. This year saw the return of a full slate of club sports competitions following two years of suspensions due to COVID-19.

THIS YEAR’S CLUB SPORTS ACHIEVEMENTS INCLUDED:

• WOMEN’S RUGBY—D1 National Champions!

• MEN’S LACROSSE—National College Lacrosse League D1 National Champions!

• BOXING—Navy Women’s Boxing repeated as national champions finishing #1 at the National Collegiate Boxing Association National Championships. Navy Men’s Boxing finished #3 in the country.

• TRIATHLON—finished 2nd at the U.S. Triathlon College Club National Championship.

• MEN’S RUGBY—finished regular season ranked #9 in the country.

• MEN’S HOCKEY—won the D1 Eastern Collegiate Hockey Association Championship, qualifying for the

American Collegiate Hockey Association national tournament for the first time since 2016.

• WOMEN’S HOCKEY—finished #1 in the American Collegiate Hockey Association Southeast Division with a 17-1 record.

• FENCING—combined Men’s and Women’s teams finished #9 in the country at the United States Associate of Collegiate Fencing Clubs (USACFC) National Championships.

• WOMEN’S SOFTBALL—2018 and 2019 national champions, finished the 2021–22 season in 2nd place in the National Club Softball Association Mid-Atlantic North Division.

BRIGADE SUPPORT OF VARSITY ATHLETICS INCLUDED:

• Drum & Bugle Corps and Navy Spirit support of Army-Navy and Notre Dame football games

• Assisted in Brigade transit to Army-Navy football game

• Supported sending 500 midshipmen to South Bend for Notre Dame football game

• Supported sending 250 midshipmen to West Point for Men’s and Women’s Navy basketball games

2021 fall CRAA Women’s D1 champions

MUSICAL ACTIVITIES

• During a year when making and sharing music has been all but impossible for most and challenged by countless hurdles for those who attempted, USNA’s Musical Activities not only continued to exist and create music but thrived in ways unimaginable a year ago. Except for the Halloween Concert and the Winter Musical, all midshipmen musical ensembles formed and performed.

• Created over 50 publicly released videos of midshipmen musical performances. Over 1 million people viewed the videos on a variety of social media platforms.

• Several videos were featured on national television (NBC Nightly News), picked up worldwide by the Associated Press, featured at NFL games, and repurposed countless times on untracked personal social media accounts reaching many, many more.

• Served as a much-needed lifeline for our midshipman participants, who relied heavily on their ensemble during the very difficult year. Overwhelming response by the midshipmen as they leaned on the support structure of the organizations and recognized the

beauty that they were able to create for others which helped in countless, meaningful ways.

• Through the generosity of donors, we were able to procure equipment, instruments, and new technology required to continue operations throughout the pandemic; equipment which will continue to be utilized for years—far beyond the end of the pandemic, which will help build even better ensembles in the future.

MIDSHIPMAN ACTION GROUP (MAG)

Some of the highlights of the work and service that midshipmen have been providing to the community include:

• Outreach to community learning English as a second language with virtual sessions.

• Continued outreach to our most vulnerable populations through virtual programs with the local department of aging and disabilities as well as veterans’ organizations. For every holiday during the pandemic, MAG midshipmen also streamed concerts to senior living facilities and sent cards to VA hospitals.

U.S. Naval Academy Hosts 52nd Annual Maryland Special Olympics Competition

• Donated nearly 90,000 pounds of much needed nonperishables to the Anne Arundel County Food Bank—a new record for Naval Academy food donations.

• In February, March and April, responded to a call to action from the local community to provide much-needed assistance to incoming refugees. Midshipmen sorted and delivered donated food to local central repositories for multi-generational families in need of immediate food supplies.

• Continued to reach out to youth virtually, throughout the academic year, garnering hundreds of hours of mentoring each semester with Boys and Girls Clubs throughout many parts of the nation, both through STEM lessons and through inspirational mentoring events for Black History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, Women’s History Month and through other community-based youth outreach programs.

• Continued with volunteer clean-up projects to benefit our local environment via shoreline cleanups.

• Relaunched one of its flagship programs, namely, Mids for Kids. MAG executed this relaunch on an in-person basis. Accolades came to MAG leadership immediately, from both the Naval Academy Primary School and Annapolis Elementary School.

• In April, hosted the return of Girls on the Yard, this being the 10th year of partnership with Girls on the Run, impressing on community partners the importance of fitness, resilience and teambuilding.

• Hosted the 2022 Special Olympics on the Yard after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic

BRIGADE QUALITY OF LIFE SUPPORT INCLUDED:

• Weekend USNA Movie Program at Mitscher Hall

• Scavenger Hunts throughout the Yard at various times during the Academic Year

• Photo competitions during Spring Break

• Purchase of several outdoor athletic “Beaver Boxes” to allow for increased physical conditioning for the Brigade to help support the physical mission while MacDonough Hall is closed for renovation

• Funded 250 midshipmen’s attendance at a Baltimore Orioles baseball game in May 2022

• Funding the Class of 2026’s Plebe Summer Bowie Baysox baseball game attendance

THANK YOU

Support for Club Sports, Musical Activities, Brigade support of Varsity Athletics and other quality of life Brigade activities comes almost exclusively from profits generated by the Naval Academy Business Services Division (NABSD) and the Midshipman Activities Fund. The support for these long-standing activities is greatly appreciated as they make a major difference in the midshipmen’s personal and professional development, as well as their quality of life.

Trident Brass at the 2022 Herndon Climb