Contributed

A 2008 graduate of North Stanly High School and Albemarle native was announced as a 2019 Sailor of the Year (SOY) for Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) at a ceremony onboard Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., Jan. 23.

Kimber N. Dominguez

Aviation Ordnanceman 1st Class Kimber N. Dominguez is the learning management office departmental leading petty officer at Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit (CNATTU) Lemoore, Calif., where her leadership of 92 instructors resulted in the management of 58 courses and the delivery of more than 54,000 hours of instruction to more than 3,400 students. As command career counselor, she executed 52 career development boards and captured the fiscal year 2018 retention excellence award.

Dominguez was one of seven Sailors who competed for the title of NETC SOY, representing the top achievers from a pool of more than 8,000 military members in MyNavy HR Force Development that spans recruiting and training Sailors in an increasingly competitive talent market.

“It is truly a humbling and inspiring experience to say the least serving as learning management office leading petty officer, instructor and command career counselor at CNATTU Lemoore,” said Dominguez. “I am grateful to be a part of the team molding and training junior Sailors in both personal and professional aspects of their career. Serving as their leader and mentor provided me unlimited opportunity to influence every Sailor to reach their full potential and empower them to be quality warfighters within the fleet.”

Dominguez is part of the team that takes Sailors from “street to fleet” by transforming civilians into highly skilled, operational and combat-ready warfighters, as well as providing the tools and opportunities for continuous learning and development.

NETC Commander Rear Adm. Kyle Cozad congratulated the finalists for their roles in developing the Navy’s future force and for their contributions to the Force Development mission.

“As we recognize the outstanding contributions of these individuals, it is also fitting to reflect upon the critical role each of them plays in support of fleet readiness,” said Cozad. “Your hard work and professionalism produce the best Sailors, Marines, Soldiers, Airmen, and Coast Guardsmen in the world. I truly appreciate your personal commitment in meeting the continuous and evolving needs of our Navy and Marine Corps team.”

Dominguez has an associate degree in liberal arts and is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Saint Leo University, St. Leo, Fla.

Dominguez is also qualified as a master training specialist, which is a designation for demonstrating highly effective teaching skills and a comprehensive understanding of schoolhouse management, as well as for taking a leadership role in mentoring, instructing and evaluating instructors and curriculum. As her command’s master training specialist coordinator, she elevated master training specialist designation levels to 73 percent.

The NETC SOY program recognizes Sailors throughout the NETC domain who exhibit attributes, such as sustained superior performance, leadership, mentorship, knowledge and teaching of military history and heritage, self-improvement, command and community involvement and exemplary military bearing.

“These outstanding Sailors and Marines were selected from an extremely talented field of candidates who epitomize the honor, courage, and commitment of military personnel throughout MyNavy HR Force Development,” NETC Force Master Chief Karim Cole said.