USN Lt. Commander David Kawesi-Mukooza, Williamsville North High School, Class of 1996

During 16 years of service in the U.S. Navy, Lieutenant Commander David Kawesi-Mukooza has executed eight combat deployments. Immediately following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, LCDR Kawesi-Mukooza deployed with Carrier Air Wing-11 (CVW-11), the first Navy air wing engaged in combat operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

Between 2003 and 2007, LCDR Kawesi-Mukooza completed three deployments with Naval Special Warfare. During this period, he supported the execution of inaugural Afghanistan presidential elections and foreign internal defense operations in the Philippines. At the peak of instability in Al-Anbar Province, Iraq, LCDR Kawesi-Mukooza spearheaded intelligence operations with Iraqi police in the provincial capital, Ramadi. In 2008, he led a Defense Human Intelligence Team with U.S. Army Special Operations Forces in Al Qut, Iraq. From 2010 to 2013, he led the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Multiple Threat Alert Center, the largest contingent of military personnel at NCIS. In 2012, as officer-in-charge of a NCIS detachment, he was responsible for conducting operations throughout Europe and Africa.

LCDR Kawesi-Mukooza was most recently deployed to Afghanistan, serving as an advisor to the Afghanistan Ministry of Defense General Staff. He supported the planning and execution of the Combined Elections Security Order, enabling the landmark 2014 national elections in which seven million Afghans participated. The successful elections yielded the first ever transition of presidential authority.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematical-Economics with a minor in Japanese from Wake Forest University and a master’s in National Security Studies from the College of International Security Affairs at the National Defense University. He is also a member of the National Defense University Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction Program for Emerging Leaders. He is a proficient Pashto, Arabic and Dari (Farsi) speaker and active participant in the U.S. Naval War College Center on Irregular Warfare and Armed Groups’ education partnership with the Afghanistan National Defense University.

While a student-athlete at Williamsville North High School, he was a four year starter on the Boys’ Varsity Soccer team and a 1996 PUMA Cup participant - at the time, the only All-Star Tournament for the nation’s top 56 high school seniors. In 1995, as a junior, he served as Class President on the Student Council. LCDR Kawesi-Mukooza was the #1 National Professional Soccer League Draft Pick in 1999, a full-scholarship student-athlete and All Atlantic Coast Conference performer at Wake Forest University. He travelled abroad on the U.S. National Teams and trained with the Omiya Ardija in the Japanese J-League. He is currently involved in his local community, as a  Fredericksburg Football Club Academy and National Premier Soccer League coach, identifying potential elite players and training them at the highest level.

LCDR Kawesi-Mukooza is married to Beth A. Lucarelli, a Wake Forest University and Williamsville North Alumna and an All-State high school swimmer. They have three children, Navi, Petra, and Michael.