Encircling a conference room at the U.S. Naval Academy are pictures of the academy?s 82 commandants. The last one stands out in a significant way ? it?s the image of Capt. Margaret Klein, the outgoing commandant and first woman to hold the position. Klein, a 1981 academy graduate and former naval aviator, will leave the academy this month, having been selected for promotion to rear admiral. She is expected to join the Naval Warfare Command in Norfolk, Va. Klein, 50, has been a trailblazer at an institution that still deals with gender issues 30 years after women were first admitted.
What has been the biggest surprise about being commandant?
[The media] was the biggest surprise. I got a call from [then superintendent Vice] Adm. [Rodney] Rempt when I was in Naples Harbor on the [USS] Eisenhower. The next day ? no kidding ? there were 20 requests to talk to me. I was like, “Really?” They [change commandants] every 18 months. What?s the big deal? [The media attention] is not like this anywhere else in the Navy. The media?s been fair, for the most part.
How has the role of women in the Navy changed since you joined the fleet?
We have a lot of international navy people ask us how we integrated women. I tell them to make sure the laws are aligned to give women the opportunity they need to serve before you open your naval academies. When I was here, there were a small number of jobs women could go into. We were not mainstream. Today, we?re mainstream. The opportunities are now out there, and it is removing the barrier between male andfemale midshipmen that existed before combat exclusion. [Women were allowed to fly combat missions in 1991.] It?s much better now.
What was the reaction to you being named commandant?
It was a bigger shift for alumni than the midshipmen. To the midshipmen, they have a highly defined chain of command ? they?re not going to question the superintendent?s actions. The alumni remember how it was when they were here, and anything different from that gets their attention. I spend years on the road talking to alumni. When they meet me, they see that I have the same uniform they wore, the same warfare pin, the same ribbons. Then they go, “Oh, she?s a naval officer,” and they?re past it. [Current superintendent Vice] Adm. [Jeffrey] Fowler is the first superintendent to be a midshipman when women were allowed into the academy. There is a whole segment of the population who never experienced it. It?s a curiosity factor. I didn?t get any hate mail.
Do you believe the academy?s attitude toward you was any different?
The senior staff wants the commandant to succeed, since I have the greatest influence over the midshipmen. No one has ever said they were happy to have a woman or unhappy to have a woman. I never saw anything negative from the staff.
Is the academy where it needs to be in terms of a positive climate toward women?
Every year we bring in a new group of midshipmen, and every year we work really hard on that respect piece. Maybe on the 23rd of May ? graduation day ? we were where we needed to be. But that doesn?t matter. On the second of July, a new class comes in, and the work starts all over again.
Several scandals have occurred at the academy this past year, and some have suggested this recent rash indicates problems at the academy. Is that a true assessment?
We have a process for dealing with behavior outside our norms. Our standards are pretty high. To provide context, I see the most serious cases, and I see less than 1 percent of the brigade. Greater than 50 percent of the brigade do not have a single demerit, and they get demerits for silly things. I see only major offenses, like drunk and disorderly, DUI, breaking state laws. And again, that?s less than 1 percent of midshipmen. We judge the severity. If a mid is doing well and just needs some recalibration or additional development on the moral part, then we send them back to brigade [to] work with someone. We have high standards. It?s not a growing rash. The most egregious cases get highlighted by the media, but they don?t see the Saturday morning action group reading to underprivileged kids in Baltimore, or mids collecting books to send to countries overseas to combat illiteracy.
What more can be done to crack down on sexual assault?
We?re in the process of continually reinforcing high standards and what is expected of them ? respect. It takes a lot of energy to express responsibility. And we need to work on all parts of the equation and emphasize standards, behavior and respect.
What do you believe is your greatest accomplishment at the academy?
My goal was to make [the midshipmen] as successful as they could possibly be. I got to see two classes graduate and be commissioned. I feel I have accomplished that goal by making them the best they could be on Commissioning Day.
Your biggest regret?
I got the order for two years, and I?m only here for 18 months. The good news is I?m not fired, but the bad news is I?m leaving six months early. The joke inside the Navy is that as long as you have music playing at the change of command, you?re doing well. Thankfully, the band will play, and I get to leave. There is a ton of things I wanted to do, like see the classof 2009 step into its leadership position. The same thing happened on the Eisenhower, leaving six months early. Maybe it?s just me.
What could be improved at the academy?
Just like in newspapers, you?re never happy with the way things are today. There are always improvements in the way of thinking. I know Capt. [Matthew] Klunder [the incoming commandant]. He?s very dynamic. My advice to him is that you have some really great staff here, so listen to them.
The discussion is always how to incentivize better behavior. It?s easy to punish people who do bad things. It?s a huge challenge to identify folks who?ve done a good thing and incentivize that. We always know how many demerits you have, but how many rewards? We need to move away from just punishment to include measuring positive things, and they can take that attitude with them into the fleet.
What will you be doing in your new position?
I will be the operations officer for the Navy?s Network Warfare Command, and I?ll be running all the information networks that provide intel to all carriers and ships at sea. Every piece of information on the Navy?s network will be my responsibility.
