HSSP Scholarship recipients Caroline Rozmus and Roman Concha receive scholarships.
By Andrew Mannion, Asst. Sports Editor & Emmanouel Sofillas, Staff Writer
The Air Force ROTC Detachment 560 awarded cadets within the program a full-tuition scholarship at Metlife Stadium during the New York Jets versus Kansas City Chiefs football game.
The scholarship provides cadets with many academic and professional opportunities within the Air Force. The scholarship covers nearly all tuition expenses, with the addition of a monthly book stipend to help cover the cost of supplies.
The scholarship recipients are also commishend into second lieutenant giving them a guaranteed job right out of college.
Many recipients say that this scholarship has dramatically improved their academic experiences. Once recipient, Tyler King, was a senior in highschool when he received his scholarship.
“I have never been in an environment that challenged me like ROTC,” King said. “I am constantly surrounded by a group of motivated and dedicated individuals who push me to achieve more and grow as a leader.”
The football game was one of the many experiences cadets take part in while involved in ROTC. Other events by the group may include skydiving, ringing the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, TV interviews and standing on the field at different sporting events.
Cadet Nicole Heselton commented on her experience at the football game and what these events do for the detachment. She spoke on how she was able to meet many new cadets and form a community with them.
“The Jets game was quite fun,” Heselton said. “When I first joined I had many questions about the process and the people who helped me at first were a huge source of relief. I am really happy whenever I meet people interested in AFROTC and am always happy to help out whenever I can.”
There are many different Air Force branches for a cadet to pursue after receiving the scholarship. Some can be pilots, air traffic control, intelligence as well as many others.
Cadet Michael King spoke on what his plans are within the air force.
“I am what’s called a Space Force Select Cadet,” Cadet King said. “I am very excited to be on the cutting edge of space technology. Most people do not know that you can join the Space Force through AFROTC … so you can say that my future career was wholly shaped by AFROTC. For that, I am extremely fortunate and grateful.”
Captain Ryan Smith, who graduated in 2008 from Manhattan College, speaks on his experience in the Air Force and on the many advantages that joining the air force has had for him over his life.
“You get what you are looking for as a college student, because you can match up what you’re studying,” Smith said. “For example, if you’re studying mechanical engineering, you could easily land a job doing mechanical engineering and you get not only four years of work experience, but you have military experience.”
The ROTC is also available to all students. Captain Smith remarked on how many more students are fully capable of joining the air force than they believe. He explained that physically challenging training of AFROTC should not prevent people from joining and they would still make use of the program.
“Most of the people that think they can’t do it probably could,” Smith said. “It just takes a little bit of discipline. I think the thing that stops people is not being able to run, or do physical things and be physically challenged. We are just somebody that maintains very minimum fitness standards.”