10 December 2025—The U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association and Foundation (USNA AA&F) is pleased to announce the 2026 Distinguished Graduate Award (DGA) recipients, who will be honored in a ceremony at the Naval Academy in the fall of 2026.
ADM Patrick M. Walsh ’77, USN (Ret.)
VADM Mark I. Fox ’78, USN (Ret.)
LtGen William D. Beydler ’81, USMC (Ret.)
CAPT Christopher J. Cassidy ’93, USN (Ret.)
ADM Patrick M. Walsh ’77, USN (Ret.)
Raised in Dallas, Walsh attended Jesuit College Preparatory as a varsity athlete, team captain and student council president. He received the “Distinguished Graduate” and the “Distinguished Alumnus” awards—one of only two students to receive recognition for both awards in the school’s 80-year history.
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VADM Mark I. Fox ’78, USN (Ret.)
Fox, a 1978 USNA graduate, is the most decorated Naval aviator and Naval Academy graduate since Vietnam. For his inspiring courage, leadership and his exceptional airmanship and performance in the 1991 Gulf War and 2003 Operation Iraqi Freedom, Fox was awarded the Silver Star, the Distinguished Flying Cross with Combat “V,” the Legion of Merit and numerous individual Air Medals with Combat “V.”
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LtGen William D. Beydler ’81, USMC (Ret.)
Beydler was commissioned from the Class of 1981 into the U.S. Marine Corps and trained as a Naval aviator. A graduate of the Navy Fighter Weapons School and Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Instructor course, he accumulated approximately 4,000 flight hours in tactical jet aircraft, with more than 3,000 in the F/A-18.
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CAPT Christopher J. Cassidy ’93, USN (Ret.)
Cassidy served 11 years in the SEAL Teams before his selection as a NASA astronaut in 2004. A combat-proven leader, he graduated as honor man of BUD/S Class 192 and earned two Bronze Stars—including one with Combat “V”—as well as a Presidential Unit Citation for commanding a high-profile mission along the Afghanistan–Pakistan border in the aftermath of 9/11.
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The USNA AA&F wishes to thank the 2026 DGA selection panelists, led by panel chair Admiral John Richardson ‘82, USN (Ret.), for their diligent and difficult task in selecting these four outstanding graduates from a highly competitive field of nominees.
We also thank the Naval Academy alumni who submitted nominations—the panel was impressed by the achievements of every nominee.
For more information on the nomination and selection process for the Distinguished Graduate Award and a list of past honorees, please .
The U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association and Foundation is a non-profit, independent corporation with more than 69,000 members, 70+ active alumni classes, 100+ chapters, 70+ parent groups and six Shared Interest Groups.