Where did you attend college and what did you study?
After graduating from Georgetown Prep, Michael attended the University of Notre Dame where he studied Aerospace Engineering while participating in the Naval ROTC program. Through Naval ROTC, Michael was commissioned as a submarine officer upon graduating in 2017. He did two Western Pacific deployments as the Operations Officer on the USS Jefferson City, a nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine based out of Pearl Harbor, HI. From Hawaii, he selected a follow-on tour in Washington D.C. to be close to his family including his brother, Patrick, who is currently a sophomore at Georgetown Prep. In D.C., Michael worked as the Executive Officer of the Nuclear Weapons Security Division at Strategic Systems Programs, the agency responsible for the Navy’s nuclear weapon arsenal. 

Currently, Michael is working as an associate at Decisive Point, a venture capital firm invested in early-stage defense tech companies. This summer, he will pursue an internship in New York at Blackstone before heading to Stanford’s Graduate School of Business to pursue a full-time MBA.

Share a favorite Prep tradition or memory
I’m sure “Kairos” is a fairly popular answer to this question, but it’s for good reason. High school can be a difficult environment to be vulnerable and focus on what truly matters to you as a student, as a friend, and as a leader. It’s easy to get caught up in the everyday excitement of athletics, academics, and social life. I think Kairos was so special because it gave our class a platform to prioritize a focus on our faith, on ourselves, and on each other in a way that we hadn’t before. I believe the clarity of thought and deep relationships that resulted from our Kairos retreat set a precedent for my classmates on how we can center ourselves and focus on what’s important despite all the craziness life may throw our way. 

What did your time at Prep mean to you?
Prep means everything to me. I sincerely believe that the Prep education, and most importantly, the supporting network of the Prep family, continue to prepare me for every stage of life: from college to the Navy to my recent career transition. I used to take for granted the deep-rooted and lasting relationships that were maintained with my Prep classmates, thinking all other high schools in the country were the same. I quickly realized that was not the case and understood how special of a community Georgetown Prep really is. For example:

I was able to talk through the stresses of submarine life with my friend and classmate Liam Keenan over a beer in Hawaii, I was able to talk through the Stanford GSB application process with my friend and classmate (and former President of the Yard, might I add!) Alexander Lee, and I would constantly confide in my great friends and classmates Jeff Plamondon and Bear Altemus about the unknowns of my recent career pivot into the private sector. 

These friendships are all rooted in a shared desire to make a positive impact in our communities, and I believe this shared desire is a direct result of what Georgetown Prep challenged us to become: Men for Others.

How do you live out "men of faith, men for others" today? 
At Notre Dame, I fell in love with the sport of boxing. Notre Dame has an incredible boxing tournament each year called the Bengal Bouts, in which all the proceeds benefit the Holy Cross Missions in Bangladesh. During my Junior Year, I trained my tail off and was able to fight through the competition as an underdog and win the entire tournament. I was incredibly proud of my accomplishment, but I was far more moved by the impact that the tournament had on the lives of those less fortunate in Bangladesh. I fell in love with the concept of using a sport as passionate as boxing to make a greater impact in the world.

When I joined the submarine force, I leveraged this same concept to help my sailors who were struggling with the mental anguishes of deployment, the military, and submarine life. I convinced my Captain to hang up some boxing equipment in the engine room, and every day I would train with a small group of sailors. Over time, I noticed that the resilience, strength, and courage instilled by the sport began to manifest in my sailors' lives. This newfound confidence empowered them to tackle their professional and personal challenges more effectively.

When I moved back to DC in 2022, I wanted to continue to leverage my passion for boxing to make a greater impact in the lives of others. After months of volunteering at Walter Reed National Military Hospital, instructing boxing classes for service-disabled veterans, I decided to take a leap of faith and start my own charity, Warrior’s Corner. With Warrior’s Corner, I aim to harness the empowering qualities of boxing and package them into tailored, effective, and implementable programs for veteran centers, hospitals, and military communities. My vision is that these programs will give struggling veterans the confidence and encouragement needed to fight through their own unique battles in life.

If you’re curious to see what Warrior’s Corner is all about (or if you just want an excuse to enjoy some amateur boxing fights, live music, and a great outdoor venue), feel free to come join in on our first fundraiser event at the Bullpen in Washington DC in the afternoon of Saturday, May 18, 2024!