ANNAPOLIS, the United States, May 24 (Xinhua) -- With hat toss, laughs and hugs, more than 1,000 midshipmen on Friday graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, eastern U.S. state of Maryland, and were commissioned as either Navy ensign or Marine second lieutenant.
Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan delivered a commencement address, urging the midshipmen to make efforts to change the status quo and "set the standard on preventing sexual harassment and assault."
Among the total of 1,052 graduates, 296 are women, according to the academy's press office. Estimated attendance for the graduation was 25,000, including the current classes.
"I need you young Lieutenants and Ensigns to set the standard on preventing sexual harassment and assault in our ranks. The status quo won't cut it," Shanahan told the midshipmen at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
"Sexual assault and harassment degrades the dignity of our teammates, and we are on the side of personal dignity in this era of renewed great power competition," the official said.
The 2019 class of the Naval Academy, founded in 1845, had a record graduation rate of 89.9 percent, and also record number of students headed to graduate school, 81, said the academy's superintendent vice admiral Ted Carter at the graduation and commissioning ceremony.
The number of cases of unwanted sexual contact, ranging from groping to rape, rose to 20,500 in 2018 from 14,900 in 2016, according to a Pentagon report released earlier this month.
The report found the Marine Corps had the highest rate of estimated sexual assaults at nearly 11 percent, followed by the Navy, Army and Air Force respectively.
