Tkaler,
When our DS did this, it is not for family members they are asking to present the award, it is usually your ALO or regional AFROTC.
This is the time they do the spiel about the award amount, what it includes...monthly stipend, book allowance, etc.
It is in their own way to promote the AFROTC program. Many parents will have younger children and this is the way for them to indirectly recruit candidates for future yrs.
At our DS's school, when they did the spiel, parents sitting around us did not know that it was our child, and you could hear them on how impressive the scholarship is. We also had a parent that had a child in AFJROTC that did not get it, and you could here them discuss how competitive it is to get one.
As you can see from my post the person they want is somehow tied to AFROTC within the system. The slot is if you have someone that is in, if you don't fill it in they will send someone. It really is about covering all the HS's. Our DS asked for his ALO, but because his ALO was already spoken for at another HS, they sent someone from the AFROTC det.
Or at least that was how I have ever seen it done (3 kids...2 different hs)
psychedmom, is your ds in JROTC? I have seen over the yrs that some large schools like yours they had them come in during the day and present it when they were in their JROTC class. Not the same as the big one, but it is still a memory all of you will cherish.
I also agree with Jcleppe every school is different. At my kids HS no names were printed, just the scholarships and how they get it. In the hallway (those glass frames they use to decorate) for the final month, every child that got a scholarship had their sr yr book picture and the award. If the child had multiple scholarships they had one for each award and one that had the final grand total of the amount they won. Thus, that night the parents could put a face with the actual scholarship as they were walking to/from the auditorium.