May 28, 2008 – U.S. Coast Guard Ensign Nkosi Thomas graduated from the Coast Guard Academy with a Bachelor of Science in Management. His first assignment will be as a Deck Watch Officer on the Coast Guard Cutter Forward (WMEC 911) in Portsmouth, Virginia.
Thomas was well represented by his Virgin Islands family, which included parents Janelle and Randolph Thomas, his grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. The commencement address for the graduating class was given by Vice President Dick Cheney. The vice president was joined by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Coast Guard Commandant Thad Allen and Superintendent of the Coast Guard Academy Admiral J. Scott Burhoe. President Bush addressed last year's graduates.
His classmate, First Class Cadet DeCarol Davis, the Class of 2008 distinguished graduate, gave the cadet commencement speech during the academy's 127th commencement exercises. As the ceremony came to a conclusion, the cadets tossed their military hats in the air while Coast Guard aircrafts flew by as a symbol of their success.
Thomas, a 2003 CAHS graduate, is excited about his first assignment as a commissioned officer. He plans on spending part of his vacation time in the Virgin Islands.
