After graduating from Georgetown Prep in 2016, Will attended the College of the Holy Cross, where he studied Biology and participated in Navy ROTC, finishing his senior year as the Battalion XO. Upon graduation in May 2020, Will commissioned and started the pipeline to become a Surface Warfare Officer (SWO) onboard USS NITZE (DDG 94) in Norfolk, VA. During his first tour, he served as the Gunnery and Ordnance Officer, spending over 14 months at sea, including a deployment to the Middle East. While there, his ship conducted maritime security operations throughout the Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Oman, and the Red Sea. Will led his boarding team in the successful seizure of over $40 million of illicit narcotics tied to various non-state actors. After his first tour, Will completed several schools in Newport, RI, in preparation for his next billet. He will return to NITZE for his second tour as the Damage Control Assistant, responsible for casualty control operations on board.

What did your time at Georgetown Prep mean to you?

My time at Prep meant the world to me. It gave me a framework based on Jesuit teachings for comprehending my experience in the Navy and rising to the various challenges each day. All junior officers in the Surface Navy are placed in a precarious position beginning on day one with significant responsibility for people from diverse backgrounds and complex weapons systems while 6,000 miles away from home. Learning the concepts of servant leadership and Cura Personalis proved critical to working with our combat arms team in representing a unified front abroad for the United States. To the current students, you never know when that life lesson you learned at Prep like studying for LUG, drawing up a play at halftime for a Prep-Landon lacrosse game (Go Prep, Beat Landon), or listening to your advisor during break, will consummate into something substantial, but I can tell you with full confidence that it will.

Another blessing that I wasn’t expecting was how close Prep guys stayed together while in the military. For the past three years, I have been fortunate enough to live with Jack Quinn ‘16, who is stationed on the USS MESA VERDE. I am currently attending Advanced Division Officer Course at Surface Warfare Officer School in Newport, RI, with Marco Patzy ‘15. I even stay in close touch with West Point graduates Pat Swanton ‘16 and Colin Shreves ‘17. Talking about our shared experiences in the Department of Defense through a Jesuit lens has been a blessing that I will forever be thankful for.