This website is awesome from so many preparation angles including and especially first hand experiences. Many parts of the country are well-represented with academy alumnae and even folks who didn't attend but served on active duty at the USNA. In Northeastern Pennsylvania, where we live, we've explored local organizations to gain some insights too; the American Legion, VFW, our Masonic Lodge, National Sojourners, and our local police and fire fighters. And we've met people with first hand academy and military service experience that way. In my lodge is one gentleman with a son (Major) on active duty and separately a Navy Mater Chief (Ret.) who served as yeoman to the Commandant sometime back. High school JROTC has been another good source of information. The Marine Corps JROTC lead instructor (colonel) graduated USNA. All these people in the community are giving strong advice on becoming more well-rounded, civically oriented, and teaching lessons in building a solid foundation of good character.
The Bensalem, Pa. JROTC commander has taken the unit to a whole new level adding things I've never seen such as a PT team (that practices the CFA every week), a shooting team (air rifles), and an academic team that practices for the SAT and is competing in the JLAB competition now.
JLAB (link at the bottom) is really neat- 65% of it is SAT practice. Twice a week the team meets for four hours and takes the test again, and again, and again. And they review problem solutions as part of the process. Since it's a school activity, it's free. That having been written, we have found several sources online where one can practice the SAT relatively inexpensively.
One of the things helping our son more-strongly grow in the direction of service is hearing the same forward-thinking, positive advice from independent non-parent sources. Gifting our teenagers relatively unfettered time, through volunteer work for example, with the right seasoned mentors helps them appreciate things their parents say without their parents having to repeat them. And volunteering with organizations likely to have such "right mentors" is also.. free.
Good luck to everyone with a son or daughter aspiring to serve. It's the best character building, patriotic exercise they'll ever experience and they'll have friends for life.
WASHINGTON, D.C., (June 25, 2018) -- Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps Cadets from across the country competed in battles of knowledge and skill on the campus of the Catholic University of America June 22-25 during the JROTC Leadership and Acad...
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