The Association of Naval Services Officers (ANSO) is an organization dedicated to expanding the presence of

Hispanic and Latino Americans Hispanic and Latino Americans ( es, Estadounidenses hispanos y latinos; pt, Estadunidenses hispânicos e latinos) are Americans of Spanish and/or Latin American ancestry. More broadly, these demographics include all Americans who identify as ...

in the Sea Services of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

, the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

, and the

United States Merchant Marine United States Merchant Marines are United States civilian mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian mariners and the merchant vessels are managed by a combination of the government and private sectors, an ...

. The organization was established in 1981. ANSO connects and networks Hispanics in the Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and Navy together and supports recruitment and retention of officers in the Sea Services. Programs include mentoring, training, and education. ANSO works particularly closely with the Navy to support the diversity goals of the

Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the professional head of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the secretary of the Navy. In a separate capacity as a memb ...

of increasing the number of Hispanic active duty officers from 6 to 13 percent by 2037.

History

Recruiting Hispanics and preparing them for careers in the Navy was a special project of

United States Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the United States Department of the Navy, Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States D ...

Edward Hidalgo Edward Hidalgo (born Eduardo Hidalgo; October 12, 1912 – January 21, 1995) served as the United States Secretary of the Navy in the Carter administration from October 24, 1979 to January 20, 1981. He had previously served as Assistant Secre ...

during the

Carter administration Jimmy Carter's tenure as the 39th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 1977, and ended on January 20, 1981. A Democrat from Georgia, Carter took office after defeating incumbent Republican President ...

from 1979-1981. Hidalgo began addressing recruitment options at the Hispanic Officer Recruitment Conference (HORC) in December 1980. As a result of this meeting, the Association of Naval Service Officers (ANSO) was created. ANSO was formally established in February 1981. In the 1990s, ANSO National President CDR Raúl Castañeda, USN (1993-1996) expanded the mission of the organization from one of recruitment of Hispanics to one that also included training and networking. Castañeda also helped increase the number of members, doubling it in size.

Chapters

ANSO has chapters in various states which directly assist the Sea Services efforts in attracting Hispanics as naval officers, as well as retaining Hispanic officers through recruitment, mentoring and educational efforts. ANSO conducts an east and west regional professional development symposium each year which attracts high-level military leaders who assist in furthering the organization's goals.

ANSO Board of Directors

The board currently consists of 21 members (2012-2013). * National President: CDR Blanca Rosas, USCG (Ret.) * National Executive Vice-President: CDR Jose Rosario, USCG * National Secretary: LCDR Yamaris Barril, USCG * Western Region Vice-President: CDR Jason Brand, USCG * Eastern Region Vice-President: CAPT Milciades "Tony" Then, USN * Navy Service Representative: LCDR Rolando J. Machado Jr., USN * Marine Corps Service Representative: Lt. Col. Jennifer Ballard, USMC * Coast Guard Representative: LCDR Eric Driggs, USCGR

ANSO Board of Advisors

* Ray Mellado, CEO Great Minds in Stem, ANSO BoA Chairman

History

Chapters

ANSO Board of Directors

ANSO Board of Advisors

References

Further reading