Cadet Profiles

Sean Prescot Silva '25 Hometown: Effingham, IL Company: Charlie

What leadership position do you aspire to hold at MMA someday? First sergeant Number of semesters you have attended MMA: Two Why did you enroll in MMA? It would be a new experience, and I thought I would make a lot of friends. Why do you attend MMA now? For learning and to gain leadership skills. What is the best part of your MMA day? Sports and free time. What’s the most challenging part? Being away from home. What is your goal after you leave MMA? To be a video game tester. What is the most important thing you’ve learned at MMA so far? You need to keep going no matter how hard it is. What do you do on the weekends? I Skype my family, go to church and hang out with my family by playing games. What’s your favorite class this year? Science and robotics. Favorite food in the mess hall? Spaghetti and meatballs.

John Murphy '20 Hometown: Independence, MO Position: Battalion Commander

Why did you enroll in MMA? It wasn’t my choice to enroll. My older brother (Paul Murphy ’18) attended MMA and told me nothing but terrible things. I was unhappy to be enrolling, and I thought I would only be here for a semester. Why do you attend now? Because of the unique leadership opportunities. Here, I’m able to positively influence more than 200 cadets across the corps every day. I’ve learned the values of honor, integrity and hard work, and I’ve made friendships that will last for the rest of my life. Favorite part of the day? Morning formations. I stand in front of the entire corps and am able to really see the responsibility that I carry as battalion commander. I look out at the corps as a whole and challenge myself to make a difference for them every single morning. What’s the most challenging part? I’ve had to make several decisions that are beneficial for the corps but that my friends disagree with, which is never easy. What’s your goal after you leave MMA? To attend college and study music and business. I wish to enroll in ROTC to keep challenging myself. Eventually, I would like to attend law school to help me achieve my dream of becoming a politician.