NEWPORT — The arrival of a new command — and with it 20 military positions and 40 civilian jobs — will be cause for celebration at Naval Station Newport on Wednesday.

And the following day, Navy brass will gather to dedicate a $4.5-million pool that will be used to train the rapidly rising number of students who come through Newport every year.

The two events underscore how Newport has emerged from the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process with a bright future as a Navy education center. The federal initiative resulted in the downsizing, closing and consolidation of many military installations.

The Center for Service Support shut down in Athens, Ga., late in June, and will resume operations here on Wednesday in Fitzgerald Hall on Coasters Harbor Island. The command oversees 13 Service Support schools around the country that provide training in administration, logistics and media for 12,000 officers and sailors annually.

“It’s a big deal,” said spokeswoman Lisa Rama. “It represents more employment in this state.”

Many of the civilian employees in Georgia chose not to relocate, which will result in the need for hiring in Newport, Rama said.

Officer Candidate School returned to Newport in 2008 — after a 15-year absence — bringing with it not only jobs but close to 1,000 students who go through the program each year. Chief Warrant Officer/Limited Duty Officer School also arrived last year.

The Navy Supply Corps School, also being relocated from Athens, is slated to open in new facilities in January, bringing 2,500 students a year, 100 active-duty positions and 80 civilian jobs.

By 2010, the number of students attending educational programs in Newport is expected to increase by 3,600 from the pre-BRAC levels.

Construction of the pool, in an 11,280-square-foot building, began in March 2008. It will be used for combat and survival training, including basic swim instruction and man-overboard exercises. The pool is next to Callahan Hall and was built by Consigli Construction, of Milford, Mass. Training will no longer take place at the pool built on the base in 1945 during World War II.

The new pool will be dedicated to Lt. Michael P. Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, N.Y., a 2001 graduate of Navy Officer Candidate School who was killed in action while conducting counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan in 2005.

His four-man Navy SEALs team was covertly conducting reconnaissance east of Asadbad, in Kumar Province, when discovered by local nationals. The team soon found itself surrounded and under attack by about 50 fighters allied with the Taliban.

Under heavy fire, Murphy left cover to radio for support. He was shot in the back and dropped the transmitter, but he picked it up, completed the call and then rejoined his team.

A helicopter arrived to rescue the SEALs. But a rocket-propelled grenade hit it, killing all 16 men aboard, before it could land. Three of the four SEALs, including Murphy, died in the battle.

Murphy was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 2007. Members of his family will attend the dedication.

rsalit@projo.com