On February 1, at the Casa Grande Union High School District Governing Board meeting, [L-R] Chief Warrant Officer Hall, Casa Grande Superintendent Dr. Battle , Cadet 2nd Lieutenant Aleena Nielson, Arizona Department of Education Cathie Raymond, and Master Sergeant Rico], beamed with pride. The room was brightened by smiles as Vista Grande High School’s Marine Corps JROTC Cadet 2nd Lieutenant Aleena Nielson received her award as one of five Arizona nominees for the 2021-2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars in
Career and Technical Education. From a statewide pool of 45 other applicants, Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman selected Cadet Nielson as one of the top competitors. The application called for academic rigor, technical competence, employability skills, and ingenuity/creativity/problem solving. Cadet Nielson will now compete at the national level as her application goes to the National Review by the Commission on Presidential Scholars at the U.S. Department of Education. The Spartans are instructed by Dr. Tyrone Hall, CWO-3 (ret), and MSgt Jorge Rico. Visit their webpage at
www.cguhsd.org/vgJROTC.aspx.
Photo
[L-R] Dr. Tyrone Hall, CWO-3, Ret (Senior Marine Instructor), Dr. Anna Battle (Superintendent), Aleena Nielson (U.S. Presidential Scholar Candidate), Cathy Raymond (Arizona State Director of CTE), and MSgt Jorge Rico (Marine Instructor).