How should a junior officer get prepared to work in an international world of partnerships and alliances. How did the Academy and its Moral-Mental-Physical mission prepare this Admiral for a life in the Fleet and beyond? How does gratitude play a part. Vice Admiral John Christenson, USN (ret.) is a graduate of the Naval Academy. He served as a Surface Warfare Officer, including numerous commands at sea. Ashore, he was the President of the Naval War College, and he served as the US Military Representative to the NATO Military Committee in Brussels.