NEWS RELEASE

Communications and Marketing Office
600 S. Clyde Morris Blvd.
Daytona Beach, FL 32114-3900

For more information, contact:
Phone: 386-226-6157
Fax: 386-226-6158
Contact: Mary Van Buren
Phone: 386-226-6525

Embry-Riddle Navy ROTC Battalion to Host Statewide Junior ROTC Competition

Daytona Beach, Fla., Jan. 18, 2006 -- Teams from 12 Florida high school Navy Junior ROTC units will compete Saturday, Jan. 21, at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University for state JROTC recognition and for Embry-Riddle scholarships.

The units will take part in a series of physical, academic, and team-building exercises. Participants will be judged and ranked individually and as teams.

“This field meet will be the largest undertaking for the Embry-Riddle NROTC to date,” said NROTC commanding officer, Capt. Ted Wasylkiw. “Our midshipmen are working hard trying to forge a lasting relationship with the Junior NROTC units, with the ultimate goal of building esprit de corps with the cadets that are visiting the campus.”

The day-long event begins at 7:30 a.m. on the Varsity Soccer Field adjacent to the ICI Center on Clyde Morris Boulevard. It concludes with an awards ceremony at 3:15 p.m. The top three teams in the competition receive an invitation to the state meet that takes place later this year.

There is a special bonus for members of the winning team.

“We will be awarding Embry-Riddle scholarships valued at $12,000 based on four academic years of study to all members of the winning team,” said Gary Hamme, vice president of Marketing and Enrollment Management at Embry-Riddle. “The scholarships will be announced following the competition, and individual certificates will be awarded later in a ceremony at the winning school.”

Hamme added that the scholarships are for students enrolling in four-year, full-time undergraduate academic programs at either the Prescott, Ariz., or Daytona Beach, Fla., campuses.

“The scholarship is renewable annually as long as the student maintains both full-time status and a 3.0 cumulative grade point average (GPA),” Hamme said.

During breaks in the competition, the young cadets will be able to get an up-close look at both university and military related displays, including an H53 Echo Navy helicopter.

The high schools taking part in the competition are Crystal River, Cypress Creek, Evans, Flanagan, Krop, Lake Howell, Port Charlotte, St. Lucie, Titusville, Vanguard, Wakulla, and Winter Park.

For more information, contact Maj. Mark Riedy at (386) 323-8991 or at riedym@erau.edu.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world’s largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, offers more than 30 degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Engineering. Embry-Riddle educates more than 32,000 students annually in undergraduate and graduate programs at residential campuses in Prescott, Ariz., and Daytona Beach, Fla., through the Extended Campus at 136 teaching centers in the United States, Canada, Europe, and the Middle East, and through distance learning.