If you were to look up the requirements for admittance into one of our country’s Service Academies, you would think it simple. If you searched further to find the Application Process Timeline for the United States Military Academy at West Point (USMA), it seems like an easy thirteen-step process. What you wouldn’t understand unless you began the process, is the rigor and demands involved. Service academies, after all, provide their cadets with an Ivy League education. Only a small percentage of applicants are accepted each year. Yearly, there are applicants who are not offered appointments that end up at Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, and Stanford. For the past year and a half, a senior at Worth County High School has worked to beat the odds and has earned an Appointment to the historic and prestigious establishment that is West Point.
In the fall of 2023, Judge Dallas joined the roughly 40,000 young men and women to apply to the USMA each year. The process is so rigorous however, that despite regular information sessions being held to give families as much information as possible, only about 14,000 potential cadets actually complete their application. The Dallas family attended several of these sessions from Atlanta to Tallahassee. To ensure their son was pursuing the right academy for him, they toured both the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, and the United States Military Academy at West Point in early September of 2024. These visits cemented West Point as Judge’s choice for his college years.
West Point’s application process itself focuses on the “Whole Candidate” by looking at three main areas: Academics, Leadership, and Physical Aptitude.
They saw the “Whole Candidate” in Judge through his volunteering with those with special needs, and coordinating blood drives for the school. They saw it in his multiple national awards and in him being the county representative for various conferences. They also saw it in him attaining a 1300 on his SAT, a 31 on his ACT and maintaining a GPA over 3.9. The first engineering school in the country required more from him though.
While Dallas nailed his Field Force Interview and impressed West Point’s regional commander, everything he had done for the entirety of his high school years, both in and out of the classroom, was logged, rated, and critiqued, and his determination was tested. He was required to show higher math scores on the SAT and ACT, and take even more accelerated classes. Meeting the challenge, Dallas took on a full five-course load, excelled in dual- enrollment classes, made the Dean’s List and President’s List, requested more advanced maths and sciences, and took the SAT and ACT a combined total of six times. This was all while maintaining leadership roles in JROTC and competing in three overlapping sports, both in and out of school.
Judge is the Battalion Commander (Lieutenant Colonel) in the high school’s JROTC program, serves as Captain of the JROTC Raider Team and Captain of the Rifle Team, earned 1st Place in the Region and 1st Team All-Region for Rifle, and is nationally ranked in shotgun sports. Judge easily passed the Candidate Fitness Assessment and Department of Defense physical, which are just a few more requirements of the application. Having these academic, leadership, and athletic achievements, as well as writing several essays, and receiving several letters of recommendation, allowed Judge to finally complete the majority of his application in October of 2024.
Meanwhile, part of the process requires attaining a congressional nomination. While Judge was working tirelessly to provide West Point with a well-rounded cadet candidate, he was also working to complete nomination packets for all 3 congressional offices including Congressman Scott, and both Senators Ossoff and Warnock. Each packet required more transcripts and testing results, additional essays, and further letters of recommendation. Judge earned the privilege of being selected for interviews with all 3 offices. After appointments in Tifton and Atlanta to interview in front of congressional panels, Judge received Congressional Nominations from both Congressman Scott’s office and Senator Ossoff’s office, making him one of only 2,000 to make it this far in the application process each year.
With nominations in place, on January 2, 2025, the Southeast Regional Commander presented Judge Dallas’ file to a panel of 13 Officers on West Point’s Board of Admissions, and on the morning of January 3, 2025, Judge received a call that will forever change his life. This young man from South Georgia was being offered an Appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point. The following Monday, Congressman Scott called Judge to offer his official congratulations, and at 5:00 that afternoon, Judge formally accepted his appointment.
This process of acceptance is only the beginning of Judge’s journey however, as he now has over 40 additional tasks and requirements to complete, two books on regulations and traditions to memorize, and 12 placement exams to be taken before reporting to West Point, New York on June 30, 2025. After the completion of Beast Barracks, West Point’s six-week Cadet Basic Training, Judge will be one of 1,200 new cadets to officially join The Long Gray Line during the Acceptance Day Ceremony, set to be held August 16, 2025. There is no doubt that the most demanding and rewarding 4 years of his life are about to begin. Please help me congratulate Judge Dallas, as he has shown the perseverance, determination, and down-right grit to achieve his goal of gaining an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Appointment Accepted; Dream Achieved
Article Submitted by- 1SG, USA (Ret) Heath Oncale