FEBRUARY 20, 2026 – Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) recognized its 2025 Military Instructors of the Year (MIOY) during a ceremony at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Feb. 19, 2026.
The 2025 MIOY awardees include:
Junior Enlisted: Damage Controlman 2nd Class Crystal Avila, Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes Illinois.
Mid-Grade Enlisted: Damage Controlman 1st Class Anna C. Dickin, Surface Warfare Schools Command Engineering Learning Site, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Senior Enlisted: Chief Hull Maintenance Technician Librado Najera III, Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Illinois.
Officer: LT Augusta L. Garies, Mariner Skills Training Center Pacific, San Diego, California.
Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC): Capt. Phillip S. Haly (USMC), NROTC Unit Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, Virginia.
“Our five military instructors being honored today represent the best of the best, in and out of the classroom,” said Rear Adm. Greg Huffman, commander, Naval Education and Training Command. “Each brings unique strengths to the table, but they all share the same drive: to develop top-tier, battle-ready Sailors and Marines. With leaders like these, our Navy and Marine Corps can face any challenge and deliver the warfighting force that the nation needs.”
The NETC MIOY award recognizes Navy and Marine Corps instructors who have gone above and beyond the demands of their position by exhibiting the best leadership and instructional qualities of the Navy and Marine Corps. Instructors receiving these awards have competed against nearly 7,500 other accomplished individuals serving throughout the NETC domain – from Navy Boot Camp through the Navy’s advanced training centers and schoolhouses.
“The well-trained Sailor is the very heart of our Navy,” said Huffman. “Our instructors drive our warfighting advantage, transforming everyday civilians into battle-ready Sailors. Without the instructors in the room today, and thousands like them, we could not deliver the Sailors and Marines needed to sustain the Fleet and succeed in combat. Every single instructor has a profound impact on the combat power and resilience of our Naval forces.” MIOY awardee Damage Controlman 1st Class Anna C. Dickin described the experience of instructors who train future warfighters for the world’s greatest Navy.
“Transitioning from the deckplates of a carrier to the schoolhouse allowed me to pay it forward, and nothing is more rewarding than knowing the Sailors I mentored are now better equipped to succeed in the Fleet because of the standards I helped them set,” said Dickin.
NETC, headquartered at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, is the largest shore command in the U.S. Navy. NETC leads the Navy’s “Street to Fleet” process – recruiting America’s sons and daughters and transforming them through world-class training into highly skilled, battle-ready warfighters. More than 87 percent of new Sailors flow through NETC’s schoolhouses and learning centers once they graduate boot camp – and on any given day, NETC is training 33,000 Sailors at its 251 training sites.
For more information about NETC, visit the command’s website at https://www.netc.navy.mil/ and follow the command’s social media: Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NETCHQ, Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/netchq and LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/netchq/.
Story by Ensign Thomas Kane
Naval Education and Training Command