Port High to name DOD director to its Wall of Fame

Port Washington High School will name 1974 graduate Tom LaCrosse, director of Defense Support of Civil Authorities in the Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense, to its Wall of Fame during a Friday, April 13, ceremony in the auditorium.

The event, which is open to the public, begins at 1:25 p.m., but guests are asked to arrive between 1 and 1:15 p.m.

As director of Defense Support of Civil Authorities, LaCrosse coordinates and oversees the Department of Defense during disasters, public health emergencies and major events.

He is a retired Army colonel who served for more than 27 years in numerous military police command and staff assignments in the United States, Europe and the Middle East.

After graduating from Port High, LaCrosse earned a bachelor’s degree from St. Norbert College in De Pere and master’s degrees in security management from George Washington University and education from Kansas State University.

His research and writings have been published in professional journals, and he is a frequent speaker and facilitator at the George C. Marshall Center for European Security Studies in Garmisch, Germany, the Army War College in Carlisle, Pa., and NATO Defense University in Rome, Italy.

LaCrosse is married and has two adult children, a professional orchestral musician and a special education teacher.

The Port High Wall of Fame was created to honor successful alumni.