ALCOAST 232/19 - JUL 2019 2018 EDUCATION SERVICES OFFICER OF THE YEAR (ESOY) AND INSPIRATIONAL STUDENT OF THE YEAR (ISOY) AWARD RECIPIENTS

R 091310 JUL 19
FM COMCOGARD FORCECOM NORFOLK VA//FC-C//
TO ALCOAST
UNCLAS //N01650//
ALCOAST 232/19
COMDTNOTE 1650
SUBJ:  2018 EDUCATION SERVICES OFFICER OF THE YEAR (ESOY) AND INSPIRATIONAL STUDENT OF
THE YEAR (ISOY) AWARD RECIPIENTS
A. COMCOGARD FORCECOM NORFOLK VA 021248 MAY 19/ALCOAST 150/19
1. I am pleased to announce the recipients of the Coast Guard Fulltime and Collateral Duty
ESOY Awards and the ISOY Award. Education Services Officers (ESOs) are a critical component
of the organization’s support network, devoting a considerable amount of time to ensuring
our workforce sets and meets professional and educational goals. Both ESOY Awards recognize
two exceptional members of this dedicated cadre of service providers. The ISOY Award
recognizes the student who clearly demonstrated sustained high standards of academic
proficiency and dedication, served as a role model in off-duty education accomplishment,
and demonstrated the Coast Guard core values of honor, respect, and devotion to duty.
This year’s awardees were selected from nominations submitted per REF (A).
2. The Coast Guard Fulltime ESOY Award goes to Mr. Gordon H. Yowell, Sector North Carolina.
Mr. Yowell’s commitment to supporting the professional development and academic needs for
active, reserve, retired, and family members led to over 100 one-on-one and group counseling
sessions. Mr. Yowell strived to strengthen working relationships with several academic
institutions at the local, state, and federal levels. Networking with the local community
college and the Coast Guard Foundation (CGF), Sector North Carolina has become the leader
in offering multiple National Maritime Center approved Operator of Uninspected Passenger
Vessel (OPUV) and 100 Ton Upgrade Captain’s Courses for Coast Guard active duty, reserve,
and auxiliary personnel. The partnerships cultivated by Mr. Yowell resulted in two
non-profit community colleges receiving accreditation by the National Maritime Center (NMC)
– the first non-profit institutions accredited by the NMC – and provided zero-cost
opportunities for Coast Guard students to receive Deck Watch Officer exam credit from
the NMC. One of the partnership colleges was also designated by the NMC as a “Center of
Excellence.”  Mr. Yowell served as the Coast Guard’s primary representative to the DANTES
Education Services Advisory Group (DESAG), and as a member on the Coast Guard University
Quick Look Study Team formed to explore and recommend professional development opportunities
for Coast Guard service members.   Ms. Lisa Eidenberger, Base Charleston, is an honorable
mention for the Fulltime ESOY category.   
3. The Coast Guard Collateral Duty ESOY Award goes to LTJG Gregory Schmidt, CGC Hamilton.
Empowering and fostering crewmember professional growth, he personally facilitated, reviewed,
and submitted 15 Tuition Assistance (TA) applications totaling $30,000 for bachelors and
associates degrees. Always available, he devoted personal time to individual counseling,
assisting members in selecting the best institutions to meet their degree goals and helping
develop realistic and attainable degree completion plans. Reaching beyond TA, he secured a
combined total of $1,500 in tuition reimbursement for crewmembers through the Coast Guard
Foundation and other grants. Further expanding his influence and impact as ESO, LTJG Schmidt
aggressively managed and coordinated the unit’s Foreign Language (Spanish) Interpreter
Program and Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT) Eligibility Program, ensuring
crewmembers formally documented their language proficiency and received $4,500 in Interpreter
Pay. His commitment to the foreign language program enhanced the execution of counterdrug
operations, facilitated 23 smuggling vessel interdictions, the seizure of 8,800 kilograms of
cocaine, and more importantly, ensured members were fairly compensated for their valuable
skill sets and contribution to operations. Broadening the scope of professional educational
opportunities, he researched and established a relationship with National Association of
Corrosion Engineers (NACE) International, an organization specializing in anti-corrosion and
paint coatings. He obtained $27,285 in Department of Defense funding for crewmembers to
attend the Level 1 and 2 Coating Inspector Program and Shipboard Corrosion Assessment
Training, a highly sought after certification within the maritime industry.  LT Nicholas
Vlasak, HITRON Jacksonville, is an honorable mention for the  Collateral Duty ESOY category.
4. The Coast Guard ISOY Award goes to LT Alexandria Trypuc, CG LANT.  LT Trypuc graduated
from Old Dominion University with a Master’s degree in Exercise Science and Wellness with
a GPA of 3.91 and sole recipient of the “Graduate Award for Academic Excellence in Exercise
Science and Wellness”. The knowledge gained from this advanced degree has benefited the Coast
Guard workforce as a whole through LT Trypuc leading free fitness classes and providing
nutritional guidance to shipmates. Over a one-year period, LT Trypuc designed a research
study, recruited participants, collected and reduced data, and wrote a scholarly paper
demonstrating her work. LT Trypuc’s  high quality research study has the potential for
publication and is currently under review by the Journal of Human Movement Science. Some of
her 2018 accomplishments in the Atlantic Area Command Center include preparing for and
participating in the Command Center’s first ever Standardization Visit, training and
assisting in the qualification of five new watch standers, and contributing to two
multi-national Search and Rescue cases. These included the rescue of an ocean rower taking
on water in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and medical evacuation of an Australian
appendicitis patient near Panama. LT Trypuc was also an integral part of the demanding
2018 hurricane season where the Command Center managed information flow Coast Guard-wide
for eight hurricanes. 
5. I applaud the efforts of Mr. Yowell, LTJG Schmidt, and LT Trypuc. BZ!
6. RDML Penoyer, Commander, Force Readiness Command, sends.
7. Internet release authorized.