MC2(AW) Jesse B. Awalt Mrs. Alma Gravely, widow of Vice Adm. Samuel L. Gravely Jr., the Navy's first African-American admiral, cuts a ribbon with Prince William County school officials during a ceremony at the school named for her late husband in Haymarket, Va. Samuel L. Gravely Jr. Elementary School will open its doors to students from kindergarten to fifth grade starting Sept. 2, 2008.

Rear Adm. Julius Caesar, reserve deputy commander for Navy Installations Command, and Rear Adm. Earl Gay, deputy chairman of the Armed Forces Inauguration Committee, were joined by Prince William County government and school officials in celebrating the opening of the school appropriately named for a man who championed education.

‘‘This event is quite significant because the school honors an American hero who quietly served his country for 40 years,” said Caesar. ‘‘He opened the door and inspired a generation of African-American flag officers, many [of whom] are on active duty today.”

The U.S. Navy Band, conducted by Band Leader Capt. George Thompson, entertained the large crowd and played the National Anthem. The U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard paraded the colors to the delight of many of the school’s future students and their families.

A group of students, attired with Sailors’ ‘‘Dixie cup” hats, sang songs including Eternal Father, the Navy Hymn, to an attentive and at times tearful audience during the ceremony. Many of the children were enthused to see so many service members attending in uniform.

‘‘Its pretty cool because my Dad was in the Navy a few years ago, and so its pretty cool to see some Navy guys like him,” said Andrew Morris, a child who sang at the ceremony and will be entering the 3rd grade at the school this year.

Gravely, whose naval career spanned World War II, Korea, Vietnam and the Cold War, spent his life silently pushing against the military’s racial challenges. He was the first African American to command an American ship, the first African-American to command an American ship in combat, the first African-American flag officer. He went on to become the first African-American to command a U.S. Fleet when he took the reins of U.S. 3rd Fleet.

Alma Gravely said she remembers her husband speaking to groups of students as a lieutenant j.g., a practice Gravely continued until his death in 2004.

‘‘The last time he ever spoke to any group at all was to an elementary school,” she said. ‘‘So I think it is very fitting that his name is on an elementary school,” she added.

The school’s slogan is a phrase Gravely used frequently to motivate others: success = motivation + education + perseverance. Their mascot: the seadog.

‘‘A seadog, in the dictionary, is a seal,” said Mrs. Gravely. ‘‘But a seadog in the Navy is an old sailor who loves to go to sea, and that is why we chose the name.”

Samuel L. Gravely Jr. middle school will open its doors to students from kindergarten to 5th grade starting Sept. 2.

USS Gravely (DDG-107), currently under construction in Pascagoula, Ms., has been named in honor of the admiral.