AIM program is by far the best opportunity for the Partners, mostly as an observer, to be confronted up close and to increase their knowledge of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy through their assignment to the multiple activities that the Academy has to offer and to be directly exposed to the life of the USCGA.
As part of the AIM program, students are offered a tour of the Academy through a ritual to honor Hopley Yeaton, who was the first commissioned officer, named by George Washington in 1791, of what would become the U.S. Coast Guard. The guided tour includes the President Passageway, Coast Guard Medals and the Quarterdeck in Chase Hall where students learned about Salmon P. Chase, Secretary of the Treasury of President Abraham Lincoln and the honor concept:ho lives here, reveres honor, honors duty”. Following is the Flag Pole where the superintendent’s flag is flown on top of a replica of the mast of the Academy training ship Alexander Hamilton and the tour end at Hopley Yeaton’s memorial. I had the immense fortune, honor and privilege to be picked for the second year in a row to lead the organization of the Hopley Yeaton ceremony with a dedicated team of Partners along with 2/c cadre truly committed to the task.
The AIM program is an incredibly challenging undertaking with high profile applicants from all 50 states. It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many and provides the seeds for the future of the Coast Guard Academy, Team Coast Guard and the elite of this great nation.