Del Val invited military academy representatives to talk to students interested in joining the military on March 19 for the first Hunterdon County Military Academy Night.

Ariel Gilbert, Del Val’s Supervisor of Security, Safety and Student Conduct, planned the event, from contacting schools to setting up the night’s events. The topic was near to Gilbert’s heart, as she served in the New Jersey Air National Guard for six years and in the Ready Reserve for two years. 

“For me, the military was an opportunity to not only serve my country, but also build upon my leadership skills,” Gilbert said. 

Del Val senior Micheal Renda, who has been interested in joining the Marines since his sophomore year, applied to the military academy.

“I got my congressional nomination for the academy, and I filled out everything for ROTC, so I just have to wait to hear back from the academy,” Renda said. 

Renda talked to the representatives from every academy there. Representatives from six different schools came to speak to the students. The representative from a Marines academy, Sergeant Patel, gave students advice on how to apply to an academy.

“Just believe in yourself,” Patel said. “Don’t think about all the noise because the only person that’ll ever tell you something bad is someone [who] doesn’t believe in themselves.”