East High School sets a Memphis – Shelby County Schools Record of Ten National ROTC Scholarships

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Authored by: MAJ Entrekin
Photos by: Cadet SGM Myles Gregory

Memphis, April 24, 2024 – Ten Army JROTC Cadets enrolled in the Memphis East T-STEM Academy and JROTC program will be recognized by the Director of Army Instruction, LTC Walleon Bobo (District JROTC Office) on Friday, May 3rd. The Memphis-Shelby County Schools JROTC awards program will be held in the Memphis East High School auditorium beginning at 1pm. Its purpose is to recognize the accomplishments of high-performing Cadets throughout the district over the last four years.

For the 2023-2024 School Year, 14 Memphis East students competed in the National competition and a record number of ten students from Memphis East High School were selected to receive three-year full tuition scholarships which activate at the start of the students’ sophomore year of college. The scholarships cover full tuition, a monthly stipend for living expenses, all book fees, and in some cases full room and board. Once on campus, the students will compete for additional funding that can cover the second half of their freshman year of study.

The combined value of the ROTC scholarships for this year is approximately $1.5 million dollars. The scholarship recipients plan to attend the following colleges: Florida A&M University; University of Memphis, University of Southern California (USC), University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), Tulane University, Howard University, Marion Military Institute, Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), Louisiana State University (LSU), and Texas A&M University. One of these Cadets also earned and accepted an appointment the United States Air Force Academy Preparatory School.

The JROTC program at Memphis East T-STEM Academy is recognized as an Honor Unit with Distinction and enrolls over 145 scholar-athlete-leaders from the 8th to 12th grades. These Cadets engage in everything from community service, cybersecurity, varsity athletics and Scouts to the Memphis Youth City Council to name a few. They even count a recent National Civil Rights Museum Keeper of the Dream award winner amongst their ranks. Cadets in the program have earned 15 National ROTC Scholarships in the last three years valued at $2.4 million dollars and one appointment to the United States Military Academy. Dr. Pamela McKinley is the Memphis East High Principal and the JROTC program is led by MAJ (Ret) Michael Entrekin and 1SG (Ret) Eugene Broadus.