Filipina aviation instructor Beatriz Cruz has been named the Military Instructor of the Year (MIOY) in the midgrade enlisted category for the Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) of the United States Navy.
First Class Beatriz Cruz currently serves as the Electrical Phase Leading Petty Officer and Command Lead for the Navy Instructor Training Course (NITC) Mitigation Course at the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit North Island located on Naval Air Station North Island, California.
Cruz, a native of Subic Bay Freeport Zone, was among the Military Instructors of the Year winners honored during a recent ceremony onboard Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. She received a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal for her achievements.
“Serving as an instructor is a very humbling experience,” Beatriz Cruz was quoted as saying in a news release on April 2, 2022.
“Staff members in my Maintenance Training Unit rely on each other’s expertise to provide the best training. Every interaction with students is a chance to give them something they can apply for the rest of their career; may it be a new skill, life lesson shared by one of us, or assistance provided during their transition between commands,” Cruz adds.
Cruz is part of a team that develops and maintains the sailor and Marine training continuum for Navy and Marine Corps aviation technical training. She is a qualified Master Training Specialist who has facilitated three training evolutions that enabled 12 instructors to also attain MTS qualifications.
“We work diligently in preparing for class, keeping programs on point and ensuring curriculum meets Fleet requirements,” said Cruz. “Not everybody sees what we do outside of class, but the feeling of graduating students knowing that we were able to provide them our best is amazing.”
“My hometown is known for these quotes: “Bawal ang Tamad sa Olongapo,” which translates to “Lazy Is Forbidden; Fighting For Excellence, and Aim High.” I always put my best foot forward in any task,” Cruz adds in Filipino.
In addition to her instructor duties, Cruz is also a Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) Uniformed Victim Advocate (UVA) for her unit. She is also the Command Assistant Education Services Officer, assisting in the facilitation of two Navy-wide advancement examinations, providing critical guidance and instruction to exam eligible personnel on proper worksheet completion procedures, rules and regulations.
Cruz was one of the hundreds of sailors who competed for the title of NETC MIOY, representing the top achievers from a pool of more than 10,000 military instructors at over 1,640 subordinate activities, sites, districts, stations and detachments throughout the world, according to the American Connections Media Outreach Program.
Beatriz Cruz is a 2005 graduate of Regional Science High School – Region III in East Kalayaan, Subic Bay Freeport Zone in the Philippines. She is a 2009 graduate of the University of Santo Tomas in Manila with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and earned a Master of Business Administration in 2018 at the National University in San Diego, California.
Filipino-Americans in the United States Navy who were recently recognized for their achievements include Petty Officer Johncarlo Legaspi who has been named the Junior Sailor of the Year and Alden Argante, the new commanding officer of the service’s Dynamic (AFDL 6).
SEND CHEERS in the comments below to Filipina aviation instructor Beatriz Cruz for being named the 2021 Military Instructor of the Year (MIOY) in the midgrade enlisted category for the Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) of the United States Navy.
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