None of the three sea service senior enlisted leaders will speak at this year's 50th anniversary Navy League Sea-Air-Space Expo, the nation's largest maritime symposium that's now in its 50th year.

What's more, the Navy League, which puts on the conference, has not scheduled senior enlisted panels, a departure from previous years that has many senior enlisted scratching their heads.

But that's not all, Not only are no enlisted leaders are scheduled to speak and there are — but neither has the Navy League scheduled any of the usual senior enlisted panels and round table discussions of enlisted issues as part of it's "Professional Development" lineup.

The absence of enlisted topics and speakers has many Navy senior enlisted scratching their heads.

But according to the offices of the Neither Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Mike Stevens nor the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps Ronald Green were invited to speak, according to their offices. The office of the master chief petty officer of the Coast Guard has no record of a speaking invitation, a spokesman said. did not respond to a query by Wednesday afternoon. were not answered as this report was published., neither of those two were even invited to speak.

The enlisted speakers and round tables have traditionally been a showcase for them to discuss workforce priorities and to field questions from enlisted, a valuable forum for a symposium that is largely discussion between industry and Navy leaders. This year's expo is set for April 13 through 15 outside Washington, D.C.

A Navy League executive said the absence of enlisted speakers isn't an intentional slight. Kevin Traver, staff vice president for Corporate Development at the Navy League told Navy Times in both a written response and a phone interview April 1 that the absence of enlisted focus this year wan't an intentional slight.

"This is the first year in several that the MCPON, MCPOCG and SGTMAJ, or any senior enlisted, are not on the schedule to speak," said Kevin Traver, a staff vice president at the Navy League, said in a written response. "And the reasons vary, scheduling conflicts, travel, etc., although they were involved in discussions leading up to the show."

Queries on the subject to the

Traver wrote that the choice not to offer "professional development" specifically targeted to the enlisted workforces was because it didn't fit in with the exposition's focus this year, which is "innovation and operational excellence." Traver wrote.

"The Navy is heavily involved in setting the agenda for the conference's professional development lineup," he said in a phone call. "It was discussed at every meeting, but in the end, none of the enlisted made the cut."

Along with innovation, Traver said that this year's exposition will focus on three other areas that include the 50th Anniversary of the event itself as well as "Cooperative Strategy for 21st Century Seapower and international programs," he wrote."

"Those focus areas have pushed the professional development schedule in specific directions."

This year, the exposition is taking on more of an international flavor, Traver said, with the heads of eight foreign navies on hand.

And for the first time, they'll have the heads of eight foreign Navies on hand on hand with Chief of Naval Operations Jon Greenert on the first day of the show.

But when asked if senior enlisted from those navies would be attending, Traver they'd considered also inviting senior enlisted from those foreign navies senior enlisted, too, he said that wasn't something that had been discussed.

"The international cooperation focus is new to us, and we see that as becoming bigger in the future, and that will be an angle we should discuss for future shows."

Still, Traver disagrees with the assessment that there's not much for sailors at the expo. as far as not offering anything to junior sailors, Traver disagrees that there's nothing.

"I think if you review the schedule, you will see many topics of interest for the "deckplate sailor" on the agenda, said Traver, a former Marine staff sergeantE-6, who added that it's hard to get sailors to attend the expo.

Citing his own background as a former Marine E-6 he wrote that there's plenty for enlisted to do at the symposium — specifically looking at all the exhibits. But what he's learned during the five year's he's been helping put together Sea, Air and Space is that it's tough to get enlisted sailors to come.

"Over the past few years, we've spent over $70,000 operating buses trying to encourage enlisted sailors to attend," he said. "We also have tried in the past to run busses from Norfolk, and sailors just don't come. Whether it's travel restrictions because of budget cuts or their ship won't let them go, they just don't get on the bus."

But he says he'll keep trying. But as a former enlisted, he says the Navy League will continue to reach out to enlisted sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen and says that in the future, they'll work to get more on the agenda that will encourage them to come.

"My favorite moment at SAS is when an enlisted person goes to a company on the floor and tells them exactly how they can improve their product," he wrote. "Because they are the ones using it day to day, and I have seen that happen."

Staff writer Hope Hodge Seck contributed to this report.

About Mark D. Faram

Mark D. Faram is a former reporter for Navy Times. He was a senior writer covering personnel, cultural and historical issues. A nine-year active duty Navy veteran, Faram served from 1978 to 1987 as a Navy Diver and photographer.

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