© U.S. Navy Midshipman 1st Class Sydney Barber will take over as brigade commander, the top student leadership position at the Naval Academy, in the spring, the Navy announced.
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LAKE FOREST, IL — A Lake Forest native has become the first Black woman named brigade commander at the U.S. Naval Academy.
Midshipman 1st Class Sydney Barber was tapped for the top student leadership position for the spring semester at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, the academy's commandant announced.
Barber, a 2017 Lake Forest High School graduate, is majoring in mechanical engineering and intends to become an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps, according to a statement from the academy.
“Earning the title of brigade commander speaks volumes, but the title itself is not nearly as significant as the opportunity it brings to lead a team in doing something I believe will be truly special,” Barber said in a statement. “I am humbled to play a small role in this momentous season of American history.”
Barber is the 16th woman selected to command the Brigade of Midshipmen since women have been allowed to attend the Naval Academy 44 years ago. She is the co-president of the Navy Fellowship of Christian Athletes Club, secretary for the National Society of Black Engineers and a member of the USNA Gospel Choir and Midshipman Black Studies Club, according to the academy.
“We are the architects of our future, and every day we earn the right to carry the torch that was once lit by the heroes, pioneers, and giants who came before us,” she added. “I owe everything to every person who paved the way for me, so I now pour my heart and soul into blazing the trail for the generations to come.”
During her time at the academy, Barber started an outreach program to encourage STEM studies among girls of color in middle school, led the team that organized the first-ever Naval Academy Black Female Network Breakfast and mobilized the Midshipman Diversity Team, according to a statement from the academy. The team consists of more than 180 students, faculty and alumni to promote diversity, inclusion and equity in the brigade.
“Sydney stands out amongst her peers, for not only her exemplary record, but for her clear vision of how she intends to make the world a better place and her accompanying bias for action,' said Lt. Cmdr. Darby Yeager, a member of the U.S. Naval Academy’s Truman Scholarship selection committee. Barber's research into legislative strategies to address educational disparities among minorities led to her selection as a national finalist for the prestigious scholarship.
Barber also holds the Naval Academy record for the outdoor 4x400m relay, having walked on to the varsity track and field as a sprinter and hurdler and lettered in all four years, according to the academy.
“She is a catalyst for action, a visionary, a listener, a doer, and a person driven by compassion, by faith, by a fierce sense of passion and heart full of love,” Midshipman 1st Class Ryan Chapman, the brigade commander for the fall semester Barber is set to succeed in the spring. “Sydney is the perfect person to lead the brigade.”
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Speaking in a recent video to commemorate the founding of the academy, Barber said she is inspired by the legacy of those who've come before her.
'People like Ms. Janie Mines, class of 1980, who was the first African American female midshipman. knowing that she walked the same stribbling walk every single day,' Barber said. 'But the difference between her experiences and mine is that she was called racial slurs on a daily basis, but now I get to walk here and follow in her footsteps and be her wildest dream.'
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Mines was the only Black woman among the first 81 female midshipmen who began at the Naval Academy in 1976. She praised Barber in a social media post Friday after the leadership positions were revealed.
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'This brought me to tears,' Mines said. 'This young woman, Midshipman Sydney Barber, will be the first Black Female Brigade Commander at the US Naval Academy. 40 years later. Thank you Sydney! Love you!'