York High School’s NJROTC received the distinction of “Unit Achievement” this past school year, a title it has not achieved since 2010.
The Unit Achievement Award is a distinction recognized by the Area 5 Manager in Norfolk, Virginia. All NJROTC units from Virginia, Southern Maryland, and Delaware are ranked based on a point system that consists of participation and competition honors completed by unit. Other honors include Distinguished Unit and Distinguished Unit with Honors, which have both become new goals of returning cadets.
Senior Naval Science Instructor Lieutenant Commander Jay Forsgren said, “Coming off the last several years, the accomplishments of this corps of cadets is nothing short of amazing. I couldn't be more proud of them, especially the seniors who led them through the gauntlet of complications. I may need to move my 10 year plan to make ‘Distinguished Unit with Honors’ up a few years.”
Naval Science Instructor Senior Chief Harold “Butch” Gibbs III also has plans for next year. He said, “Our goal is to continue to provide opportunities. Opportunities are the seeds to greatness in young minds.”
York High School NJROTC offers various resources for cadets to achieve success through competition. Their after-school activities include Drone Team, Color Guard Team, Drill Team, Academic Team, Athletics Team, Fife and Drum Team, Cyber Security Team, Marksmanship Team, and Orienteering Team. Additionally, York High School’s NJROTC program is unique compared to other units in the area, as the unit consists of students from Bruton High School, Grafton High School, and York High School.
This past year, York High School’s NJROTC teams received numerous awards. The Cyber Security Team, led by Katie Moreno (Jr.) competed at the National Semifinals in the CyberPatriot competition. The Drill Team, led by Brandon Fauci (Sr.) helped lead York High School’s unit alongside Academic Team Commander Stephen Peterson (Sr.) and Athletic Team Commanders Morgan Kanai (Sr.) and Landon Gaboury (Grafton High School, Jr.) to compete all over Virginia, and later in the Southern Regional Drill Competition this past March. There, the team won honors in each category in which York High School participated.
This summer, the NJROTC program will be offering summer camps to rising 7th and 8th grade students from all over the county who wish to develop their leadership skills in a fun, interactive way in addition to its annual summer camp offered to rising freshmen who are planning to be part of NJROTC in the fall.
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