FMHS Junior ROTC was selected to be one of 16 teams from around the country to compete in the national ROTC Academic Bowl. The team passed the preliminary exams with flying colours and will compete nationally on June 21 through 25 in Washington D.C.
The ROTC team going to the tournament consists of freshman Danish Bam, sophomore Cody Jones, and juniors Ian Bell and team captain Aditya Shetty.
“We are currently in the semi-finals,” Bell said, “so we will go to Washington D.C. over the summer to compete with the other Air Force teams.”
After the preliminary rounds, which consist of basic exams, come the semi-finals. In this round, the 16 teams that had the highest scores compete against each other in a jeopardy-esque event that tests their knowledge on mathematics, English, science, and current events.
“The competition not only tests your academic knowledge, but how well you work with your team,” Shetty said. “If you do not get along with the team or just cannot decide anything, you will fail rather quickly.”
Because the Academic Bowl is such a team-oriented event, no one person can be relied upon. Each member of the team has a specialty that is utilized through the duration of the competition to help the team excel.
“I am best at English and grammar in our group,” Jones said. “Because of that, I am usually turned to when it comes to a question about those things.”
The competition reinforces good study skills in the students competing, because it forces them to expand their horizons in areas that they struggle in as well as the subjects in which they excel. This helps prepare them for the standardized tests and college.
On June 21, guest speaker J.R. Martinez, a veteran and Dancing With the Stars champion, will give a motivational speech. The FMHS ROTC team will compete against the 15 other Air Force teams on June 22, and, if they are able to overcome the tough competition, will take on the top Marine Corps, Navy, and Army teams on the 23rd.
