May 1, 2012
Why Attend USNA?
We come from a Navy family. My grandparents, parents, Zoe’s brother. All enlisted. Zoe’s the first to show 
enough interest, she’d plan ahead to get into USNA. We went to an Academy night offered by the school district. Freshman year is not too early. She signed up on a list, talked to a mid already attending. They assured her if she didn’t start now, it would be harder next year.
What surprised us was why they attended. I expected it was because they wanted to serve their country, especially now in time of war. They did, yes, but it was as much the quality of education that got their attention. The United States Naval Academy provides one of the most prestigious educations available. The caliber of classes, professors, and students are unmatched anywhere in the country.
Every year, over 56,000 students—and 112,000 parents like me, because it takes a village as Margaret Meade said and Hillary Clinton repeated—apply to a military academy, in excess of 14,000 to the United States Naval Academy. The first thought when everyone I know hears ‘USNA’ and ‘college acceptance’ in the same sentence is ‘Wow, you must be smart!’
I was surprised that there are no classes in “How to Crack the United States Naval Academy Application”. And, this is the only book that starts four years ahead. The others address it when you’re a junior or senior and it’s almost too late to fix any shortfalls. this one starts now.
Jacqui Murray is the editor of a technology curriculum for K-sixth grade, creator of two technology training books for middle school and three ebooks on technology in education. She is the author of Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy midshipman. She is webmaster for six blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, a columnist for Examiner.com, Editorial Review Board member for Journal for Computing Teachers, IMS tech expert, and a weekly contributor to Write Anything. Currently, she’s editing a thriller for her agent that should be out to publishers this summer. Contact Jacqui at her writing office or her tech lab, Ask a Tech Teacher.
