IN Pine-Richland Fall 2018 | Page 21

P “My first solo flight was probably the single best hour of my life so far, and the total experience was the best eight weeks of my life. I have made lifelong friends that I plan to stay in contact with and, as a result of the program, I am now on my way to having a lifelong career in aviation.” ine-Richland Air Force Senior ROTC cadet Jared Slack was selected to attend a flight academy this summer as one of only 120 cadets around the world to receive the Cadet Flight Scholarship. Jared, 17, is the son of Lee and Kevin Slack. As a senior, he’s very involved at Pine-Richland High School as well as in the community. He’s on the varsity lacrosse team, where he is starting goalie and a team officer, a member of the National Honor Society, and a volunteer with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank and St. Anne’s Home in Greensburg. He’s also involved in AFJROTC—earning squadron commander rank for the upcoming year. The cockpit of the 172s that Jared flew. “Being a part of AFJROTC allows me to be involved in many activities including Drill team, model rocketry, Kitty Hawk Air Society (Academic Honor Society) and various community service programs,” says Jared. “My AFJROTC instructors— Chief Master Sergeant Michael Gasparetto and Major Michael Morrison—are my favorite teachers because they work with me and with every cadet in the unit to try to really get to know them and their individual needs. They also strive to make the classes as beneficial and as engaging as possible.” This summer, Jared received the Cadet Flight Scholarship, aimed at reinvigorating interest in the field of aviation in both the civilian and military sectors. “There’s a worldwide shortage of pilots, and this past year the Air Force decided to establish this scholarship to get high school students interested in aviation,” he explains. “The application process was long and rather difficult, similar to a college application,” Jared continues. “Each candidate had to go through several steps, an initial nomination from their AFJROTC instructors, a written application and the Airman Qualification Test (AQT). The AQT consists of several areas ranging from complex math to aviation knowledge. After all of this was complete, we had to submit the application to the Air Force and wait for a letter of acceptance or denial.” The scholarship is open to all AFJROTC cadets, and about 700 were chosen to apply, with 120 scholarships awarded. Earning the scholarship took a massive financial burden off of Jared’s family, as it costs about $10,000 to receive a private pilot’s license. “After I received the scholarship, I was given a list of colleges that participated in the program and I had to rank them based on preference. I placed Purdue University at the top of the list,” says Jared, who was accepted into his desired program. A typical day consisted of waking up at 0700 and getting breakfast, leaving the dorms at 0820 and having ground school at the airport with Professor Dillman until about 1030, then waiting for flight slots, and working on an online private pilot course, Jeppesen, with any downtime. “We flew at least one time every day for 1.5 hours and every other day we had double flight slots and flew 3 hours a day,” Jared adds. He was the second to graduate out of every cadet accepted into the program across the United States. Jared plans to attend either the Air Force Academy or Naval Academy in the future, and to continue to fly once a week on weekends, taking family and friends along for the ride. “We are very proud of Jared,” say his parents. “It has been his dream since he was 2 years old to fly, and thanks to PRHS AFJROTC, USAF and Purdue University that dream has been realized.” “My first solo flight was probably the single best hour of my life so far, and the total experience was the best eight weeks of my life,” says Jared. “I have made lifelong friends that I plan to stay in contact with, and as a result of the program I am now on my way to having a lifelong career in aviation.” n All 20 of the JROTC students graduating from Purdue. PINE-RICHLAND ❘ FALL 2018 19