FEATURE
APPLICATION TO
I-DAY By Ellen Ternes
S
“You have to go through the process of everything and then see if you’re even going to get an interview with the congressman, and you have to pass the medical exam,” Jennifer Imhoff said. “That was, I think, the most nerve-wracking part. I don’t think he found out until after Christmas.” Getting the good news is still a clear memory for the Imhoffs. They were in the car when Thomas called to say he’d been admitted.
“I just remember screaming in the car. I couldn’t have been happier and more surprised.” —Tim Imhoff, father of Ensign Thomas Imhoff ’19, USN
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE IMHOFF FAMILY
tacks of overflowing folders blanketed the Imhoffs’ dining room table in 2014. Files stuffed with information provided by senators and congressmen became the centerpiece of a mission in progress. Spreadsheets tracked every detail in Thomas Imhoff's quest to be a midshipman. The dining room table became “an Academy application war room,” recalled Tim Imhoff. “You can’t save this application for the last minute and expect a successful result,” he said. “It takes organization and stick-to-itiveness to come up with your best product.” The Naval Academy had been on the top of Thomas Imhoff’s list since eighth grade, when he toured the Yard on a Boy Scout trip. “He was just determined that the Academy was where he was going to go,” said his mother, Jennifer Imhoff. “He didn’t even want to apply anywhere else.” A top student in his class at Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls, OH, captain of the swim team, Eagle Scout and class president, Imhoff was a great candidate for admission. But Tim counseled him about the reality. “Okay, that’s great that you want to go there,” Imhoff told his son. “It’s a very selective institution, hard to get into. What’s your plan B?” Plan B would end up being West Point or ROTC, but in August 2014, Thomas received an early Letter of Assurance that he would be accepted in the Class of 2019 pending a medical exam. A relief, but that didn’t mean the wait was over. There were still hurdles to clear before packing for Annapolis.
The Imhoff family during Induction Day 2015. 12 SHIPMATE • MARCH 2020
PHOTO COURTESY OF USNA
MARCH 2020 • SHIPMATE 13
PHOTO COURTESY OF USNA
FEATURE
Early morning physical training during the 2019 Naval Academy Summer Seminar.
“I just remember screaming in the car,” Tim said. “I couldn’t have been happier and more surprised.” Thomas graduated in the top 10 in his class and is now a Gates Scholar at Cambridge University in the U.K. He’ll serve as an engineering duty officer when he returns. Ensign Imhoff advises applicants to not forget why they are applying to the Naval Academy. “It is easy to think of the application as merely an exercise in box-checking, but the application is your voice to show the Naval Academy why you are seeking an appointment and what you have done to prepare,” he said. 14 SHIPMATE • MARCH 2020
‘GETTING IT RIGHT ON THE FRONT END’ The Imhoffs’ journey illustrates the complexity of navigating the Naval Academy application process. While there is no simple roadmap for gaining acceptance into the Academy, administrators, parents, Blue & Gold Officers and admissions counselors shed light on the variety of avenues to earning a coveted spot in the Brigade. Selecting candidates from a rich talent pool is a difficult task. The process entails much more than tapping those with the highest grade point averages and standardized test scores. When narrowing down the 3,000 finalists to the
“I was a pretty decent student, but not extraordinary. So, I took AP Physics, AP Calculus. I started playing more sports and volunteering with my church.” — Second Lieutenant Kyle Andersen ’19, USMC
approximately 1,380 who will be offered appointments, members of the Academy’s Admissions Board weigh multiple factors, including leadership, integrity, life experience and physical fitness. Starting in September, then every Thursday between January and March, the 23-member Admissions Board meets all day in the Admissions Board Room on the second deck of Halsey Field House. Their job is to decide who will make it into the Academy’s next Plebe class. Made up of faculty and staff from different departments, civilian and military personnel with different warfare specialties, women, men and those from diverse ethnic backgrounds, the board
members—all volunteers—bring a variety of viewpoints. And that’s just what makes it work, said Dean of Admissions Captain Bruce Latta ’78, USN (Ret.). “When you put all those people in the same room together, what you get is a very blended perspective on each candidate,” Latta said. Choosing those who will be offered appointments is not always cut-and-dried. “SATs and grades tell you certain information,” Latta said, “but when you’re trying to analyze somebody for their personal qualities and their leadership, you have to depend a lot on the input you get. We specifically ask
about their character, their integrity, the types of things important for an officer in the Navy and the Marine Corps.” By the time they meet, each board member has already spent hours reviewing and writing summaries of hundreds of applications. Rebecca Shepherd, Ph.D., who teaches math and directs the Evening STEM Tutoring Program in The Class of 1963 Center of Academic Excellence, endowed by J. Ronald Terwilliger ’63 and Classmates, said she is responsible for analyzing about 400 applications over the course of the year. “I do my best to give every candidate record a fair analysis,” MARCH 2020 • SHIPMATE 15
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she said. “I try to provide the board and admissions office with a written summary that fairly reflects the candidate’s level of prep for USNA.” Latta said many times board members will look at the records and suggest discussing a candidate’s accomplishments. “Does that demonstrate something we’re looking for?’” Latta said. “Sometimes, we’ll spend 15 or 20 minutes on one application file. We try to provide that personal touch on each candidate, not only so a person gets a thorough look, but also to make sure we’re picking the best person or persons from the congressional district.”
Shepherd said it’s important not only to find a Plebe class that fits the needs of the Navy, but to find people who will thrive and be happy “in our unique and challenging environment.” “Getting it right on the front end to the best of our ability is a priority,” she said.
THE PROCESS Applying to the Academy hasn’t changed a lot in the past few decades, but it has become more competitive. The number of Class of 2023 applications that made it to the Admissions Board is almost double the number that made the cut when Latta joined the Office of Admissions in 2002. He became Dean of Admissions in 2006.
And, there are an increasing number who come from home-schooling and online or community college classes in place of the traditional high school model. While students today can apply to multiple civilian colleges with just one submission on the web-based Common Application, the Academy maintains its complex multi-step process. “I would say that the Academy application can be a pretty daunting and difficult process to navigate,” said Second Lieutenant Kyle Andersen ’19, USMC, now on temporary additional duty in the Office of Admissions. Andersen was drawn to the Academy as a kid, when his family
USNA ADMISSIONS PROCESS
POST HIGH SCHOOL • COLLEGE, FLEET, PREP SCHOOL INCLUDING ATHLETIC & SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS, OTHER • COMPLETE APPLICATION • APPLY FOR NOMINATION • COLLEGE ENTRANCE EXAMS • HIGH SCHOOL/COLLEGE TRANSCRIPT • MEDICAL EXAM (GOOD FOR 2 YEARS) • CANDIDATE FITNESS ASSESSMENT • BLUE & GOLD INTERVIEW • CO RECOMMENDATION (FLEET)
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS • U.S. CITIZEN • AT LEAST 17 YEARS OF AGE AND MUST NOT HAVE PASSED 23RD BIRTHDAY ON 1 JULY OF YEAR OF ENTRY • UNMARRIED • NOT PREGNANT AND NO DEPENDENTS • VALID SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER
2b
ADMISSIONS BOARD
3
2a
ACCEPTANCE
4
HIGH SCHOOLERS
SUMMER PROGRAMS SUMMER STEM PROGRAM
RISING 9TH, 10TH AND 11TH GRADERS
SUMMER SEMINAR
• • • • • •
COMPLETE APPLICATION APPLY FOR NOMINATION COLLEGE ENTRANCE EXAMS/TRANSCRIPT MEDICAL EXAM CANDIDATE FITNESS ASSESSMENT BLUE & GOLD INTERVIEW
5
RISING 11TH AND 12TH GRADERS
INDUCTION DAY
16 SHIPMATE • MARCH 2020
GETTING THE WORD OUT In 2019, the Academy’s graduation rate was 90 percent, one of the country’s highest for four-year programs with more than 50 percent STEM majors. Army’s rate runs 80-85 percent, while Air Force’s rate is 75-81 percent. Captain Steve Vahsen ’85, USN (Ret.), the Academy’s executive director for strategy, said the Naval Academy has made a commitment to trim
CLASS OF 2023 STANDARDIZED TEST DATA
CLASS OF 2023 EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND
MIDDLE 50th PERCENTILE*
THE CLASS OF 2023 INCLUDES 345 (29%) FROM COLLEGE AND POST-HIGH SCHOOL PREPARATORY PROGRAMS WHICH INCLUDE:
630-760 620-760
200
27-34
55
SAT VERBAL
SAT MATH
ACT ENGLISH
FROM THE NAVAL ACADEMY PREPARATORY SCHOOL IN NEWPORT, RI
FROM THE U.S. NAVAL ACADEMY FOUNDATION AND CIVILIAN PREPARATORY PROGRAMS
27-32 ACT MATH
88
ADDITIONAL STUDENTS HAVE COMPLETED
* 50% of the class achieved SAT/ACT scores within the range between the 25th and 75th percentile.
AT LEAST ONE SEMESTER OF STUDY AT A COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY, OR ONE AT A POST-SECONDARY PREP SCHOOL
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BENNETT FAMILY
would boat down the Chesapeake to Annapolis from their home in Rising Sun, MD. In his sophomore year of high school, he decided he wanted to go to the Academy. He also realized he was going to have to enhance his resume. “I was a pretty decent student, but not extraordinary,” he said. “So, I took AP Physics, AP Calculus. I started playing more sports and volunteering with my church.” It paid off. Andersen graduated third in his class. He was appointed to the Academy on his first try. Students who don’t receive an appointment the first time may be encouraged to reapply, especially after a year at a civilian college or preparatory school. “It’s hard turning students down,” Latta said. “We have students who are turned down now that we would have admitted when I first got here.” Ensign Drew Bennett ’19, USN, another former Ohio student and athlete, also decided the Academy was the only place he wanted to be. His mother, Ellen Bennett, said her son didn’t hear from the Academy during the winter of his senior year in high school. They were told that was a good sign. In mid-April, he got a letter. He was not accepted. “It was devastating,” Ellen Bennett said. After a freshman year at High Point University, Bennett reapplied. “I remember he called us the second week in January,” Ellen Bennett said. “Bill Johnson, our congressman, who had given him the nomination, called him and said ‘You’re getting a letter of acceptance. You’re in. Congratulations.’ Drew was just over the moon.” Drew’s dad, David Bennett, said before he got to the Academy, Drew thought his story was unusual. “But when he got there and started talking to all these other midshipmen, there were a lot of them that had kind of gone through something similar, whether they went to NAPS, or they went to university first,” David Bennett said. “It was a second or third try for several in his class.” Drew Bennett graduated 18th in the Class of 2019 and was captain of the lightweight crew team. He’s currently in San Diego, CA, for training.
The Bennett family during Parents Weekend. MARCH 2020 • SHIPMATE 17
PHOTO BY LAURA HATCHER PHOTOGRAPHY
FEATURE
Class of 2023 Induction Day.
attrition to get more midshipmen to commissioning day. “Back in my day, it was ‘Look to your left, look to your right. One of you isn’t going to finish,’” he said. Latta attributed some of the attrition rate drop to institutional changes. “The administration has worked hard to create a development mentality,” Latta said. “That starts with having great resources for students to get extra help. Another contributing factor has been the things we do to inform students before they get here.” The Academy has tried to get students interested as early as middle school. In 2008, in conjunction with the academic dean’s office, a STEM camp for rising 9th, 10th and 11th graders was created. The first year, there were about 100 students. This past year, nearly 900 attended. In the Summer Seminar program, rising high school seniors come to the Academy for five days of first-hand experience in midshipman life. Juniors 18 SHIPMATE • MARCH 2020
and seniors may be invited to attend a Candidate Visit Weekend. The Office of Admissions also hosts the summer Centers of Influence Conference, bringing educators, community leaders and counselors to Annapolis to showcase the Academy’s opportunities. And there’s the internet. The glossy paper catalogue has been replaced by a dynamic admissions webpage, Twitter, Instagram, texting, Snapchat and Facebook. There’s also a webinar that
“We have students who are turned down now that we would have admitted when I first got here.” —Dean of Admissions Captain Bruce Latta ’78, USN (Ret.)
invites students, parents and educators to log on to their computers to ask questions in real time. “I think the internet has also changed the involvement of parents and other stakeholders,” Latta said. “Our parents are much more informed about the Naval Academy because they have access to electronic or internet or social media tools to check us out.” Digital communication has added another dimension to the admissions process. In the past, offers of appointment were mailed as a traditional letter and a certificate signed by the Superintendent. It would take up to 10 days before the Academy knew if the student accepted. “The application process has turned into a 24-hour cycle,” Latta said. “Today, we put the offer in a letter that goes out electronically, and within minutes, we can have an acceptance or decline.” But when you need to draw students from every state and demographic, in-person contact in a student’s own backyard is still vital. It can be critical in
places where there’s no Navy presence or little familiarity with the Naval Academy.
FACE-TO-FACE “It’s a big joke in the office that I have a wall of thank-you notes,” said Lieutenant Erin Sleister ’13, USN. “That simple ‘thank you,’ whether it’s ‘Thank you throughout the process,’ or ‘Thank you for helping me get in,’ that means a lot to me.” Sleister is one of 14 military admissions counselors in the Office of Admissions, along with five based in the field, who travel around the country to talk to students, guidance counselors and parents about the Naval Academy. They explain the process, but they also pass on advice from their own experience, answering questions like “How can I be a pilot?” or “My daughter wants to go to the Academy. How did you feel as a female at the Academy?” Sleister travels to California, Hawaii and several other western states about once a month. Her classmate and fellow admissions counselor Lieutenant Eric Skogerboe ’13, USN, who grew up in a military family on the East Coast, hits the road in Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota and a few other midwestern states, where “Go Navy” might not mean a lot. On the road and in their office, Admissions Counselors are in pretty much constant touch by text or phone with students and parents. Sleister said Skogerboe probably leads the staff in phone conversations. “You will hear him with his students that he’s mentoring and advising, telling them, ‘I’m here at any point if you need me.’” BLUE & GOLD OFFICERS Also spread out across every state and some foreign countries are approximately 2,300 Blue & Gold Officers (BGO), who serve as the local field representatives for the Naval Academy. BGOs provide input to the admissions office, promote the Academy and work with students during the application process. Many are
Academy alumni, but parents and Reserve officers also serve as BGOs. Every applicant must have an interview, in-person or on the phone, with a BGO as one of the final steps of the application process. “We do a lot of different field events,” said Captain Steve Swift ’87, USNR (Ret.), one of four BGO Floridaarea coordinators. “We go to college fairs, Congressional Academy days. I did the Great American Teach-in, where I talked to honors and AP classes. What a great time to get in front of the kids to talk about the Naval Academy and the opportunities.” Captain Tim Naville ’76, USNR (Ret.), BGO area coordinator in Indiana, said students come to these meetings and forums well-armed with questions. Being a Blue & Gold Officer has taken some learning on his part, too, Naville said. Texting, not email, is the preferred communication method, and old sea stories often produce blank stares. “We’re not there to show them what all we did,” Naville said. “We’re there to show them what they can do in the fleet. It’s important to be nimble in your communicating ability nowadays. Also, I found that they appreciate brevity.”
CLASS OF 2023
16,332 APPLICATIONS
11,791
MALE APPLICANTS
4,541
FEMALE APPLICANTS
Blue & Gold Officers, especially people closer to the age of applicants, are always needed. Recalling that his BGO was crucial in his decision to apply to the Academy, Swift said BGOs who are relevant and have good communication skills for talking to students are in demand. He said they look for diversity across all demographics, including geographic diversity. “Our Blue & Gold Officer, Bob Frantz, was tremendous,” said Jennifer Imhoff. “He was great through all the process, from any questions that Thomas had to when he came to interview us. Bob was really good in steering Thomas in the right direction.”
THE NOMINATION Students still must receive a Congressional or service-connected nomination, such as the Presidential, ROTC or Secretary of the Navy nomination. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK), who serves on the Academy’s Board of Visitors, is authorized a maximum of five vacancies at the Naval Academy at any one time. For each vacancy, he can nominate up to 10 candidates who may be considered for the incoming class. For the Class of 2024, for example, he will have one vacancy. “Coming from a state with several active military bases and the most veterans per capita in the nation, we have a lot of motivated students who are knowledgeable about the academies and want to serve in the armed forces,” Sullivan said. Sullivan’s office has an academy nominations coordinator and an Academy Review Board, many of them service academy graduates, who interview the applicants. “Alaska is not an easy place to get around,” Sullivan said. “We are huge geographically, with very few roads, so it’s not economical for some students to come to Anchorage. Technology works great for that.” About half of the interviews are done by video. Sullivan is involved throughout the process. “My favorite thing is to call my MARCH 2020 • SHIPMATE 19
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nominees when they receive an appointment,” he said.
THE FUTURE Attracting top candidates may present new challenges. There’s talk of Congress extending a graduate’s service obligation to seven years, which may make a difference in a student’s decision to apply or commit. Then there’s the budget. Marketing the Academy takes money. Latta said the Naval Academy competes with other schools, but resources are limited. “If I can get a midshipman, or young lieutenant, or one of my younger staff in front of a student and their parents, it’s all the difference in the world,” Latta said. “We just don’t have the resources to do that all the time.” One thing that has remained constant is what motivates young people to apply to the Naval Academy.
“Most of the students I see say they feel compelled to serve the country and give back,” Latta said. “I think they also see the Academy as challenging. They
CLASS OF 2023 INCLUDES
58
ALUMNI SONS AND DAUGHTERS
41 SONS
17
DAUGHTERS
want the leadership, the teamwork that is reinforced by the school and by the service.”
A BEGINNING On 24 May 2019, the Class of 2019 was commissioned. The Imhoffs and Bennetts were in the seats reserved for families of midshipmen graduating in the top 100 in the class. “I was so close, I could have reached out and touched him,” Jennifer Imhoff said. “And to see the look on his face, that’s when I lost it. We knew he was going to graduate, but just to see how proud he was about it and how excited he was, you think of all the sacrifices and all the work. “Thinking from that Plebe Summer to that day that he walked across that stage, it was just an incredible feeling. There’s probably not a prouder day in my life.” a