By B.C. Manion
Carly Patton was determined to do what she could to attain an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point.
She pursued her goal with a vengeance, but the Zephyrhills High graduate had a Plan B.
If the appointment didn’t come through, the 18-year-old said she intended to complete her first year of college on a Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) scholarship and then apply for the military academy again.
Patton’s relentless focus doesn’t surprise Julie Moore, who has been the young woman’s guidance counselor for the past four years.
“You have kids who are driven and who do all of the things that you have to do, and then you have those students who just take it up a notch more. Carly has always been that way,” Moore said.
“When she started on this journey to be accepted at West Point, I really didn’t have any doubts that she was going to make it,” Moore continued. So, when she heard the news, she was elated for Patton, but “not particularly surprised.”
Patton is the first female from Zephyrhills High to receive an appointment to West Point, an opportunity the young woman said is valued at $450,000.
“It’s such a huge deal,” Moore said.
One of the things Moore most admires about Patton is her humility.
She quietly goes about achieving excellence, without drawing attention to herself, Moore said. The quality of her character is apparent, too, Moore added. “She’s got such a genuine personality. She’s somebody who is very authentic.”
Patton welcomes opportunities to grow, the guidance counselor said.
“I’ve always been very, very impressed by some of the choices she’s made while she’s been in high school,” Moore said. Besides completing three years of Spanish, for instance, Patton has taken two years of Chinese through an online course.
“It’s very unusual for a student to choose that course and do well,” Moore said.
Patton said she finds foreign cultures to be interesting, and she has an aptitude for different languages.
While she’s enjoyed Spanish and Chinese, she would have taken a broader array of foreign language courses if they had been available, Patton said. “I wish they had Arabic,” she said.
She thinks her interest in foreign cultures may stem from extensive travels she’s made related to her endeavors in judo. She’s gone to Costa Rica, Peru, Venezuela, Belgium, Hungary, Canada, Mexico and other places, too.
As she begins her new life at West Point on July 2, Patton said she’s not sure yet about her academic path. She can picture herself immersed in a career related to working in a foreign culture but also can envision a career in engineering.
Patton received her military academy appointment after being Congressman Rich Nugent’s principle nomination.
Each member of Congress gets 10 nominations, including one principle nominee, explained Patton, who also received a nomination from Sen. Marco Rubio and received a letter from Sen. Bill Nelson, who told her he would have nominated her if Rubio hadn’t done so. The senators do not nominate the same candidates, she explained.
Part of the process involves appearing before interview panels, Patton said. She went through two mock interview sessions to help calm her nerves before facing the real one.
When a candidate receives a principle nomination, he or she will receive an appointment provided they meet the academy’s other criteria, including physical fitness, standardized test requirements and the completion of three essays.
Patton began thinking about a military career before she began middle school.
“I have a lot of family in the military,” Patton said. “They started talking to me about the military when I was young, and I started thinking about it.
“When I got into ROTC here at the high school, it really kind of set in, that this is what I wanted to do,” continued Patton, who is the daughter of Rob and Amy Patton, of Zephyrhills.
She said her parents have been very supportive and she credits her mom, in particular, for helping her along the way.
As Patton heads off to her new life, she thinks the ROTC has prepared her for the military aspects she’ll encounter.
“We have to go through kind of a basic training,” Patton said. “I’m kind of nervous about that. But I think I’m prepared. It’s going to be hard, but I’m really excited.”
//Box
Other nominations
Area students who also received congressional nominations and were accepted to the following military academies:
U.S. Air Force Academy
Colin Lane of Odessa
U.S. Merchant Marine Academy
Samuel May of Lutz
Laurel Anne Ryback of Wesley Chapel
U.S. Military Academy
Leah Wasserman of Tampa
U.S. Naval Academy
Olivia Yeager of Lutz
Ian Keith McKenzie of Land O’ Lakes