National Naval Officers Association San Diego Chapter Awards Scholarships

SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- The San Diego Chapter of the National Naval Officers Association (SDNNOA) awarded three scholarships at its annual scholarship award banquet in Coronado, June 1.

SDNNOA awarded two Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) scholarships to Oceanside High School students, Matthew Kucirek and Blaine Farber-Schaefer. Kucirek plans to study mathematics at University of California, San Diego (UCSD). Farber-Schaefer has been accepted at Arizona State University where he will major in mechanical engineering.

The STEM Scholarship Program is open to highly qualified high school seniors who demonstrate scholastic aptitude as well as leadership potential and plan to major in a STEM related area of study.

The 2013 chapter scholarship was awarded to Quang Nguyen, a senior at Will C. Crawford High School in La Jolla, Calif., where he will be graduating as the class of 2013 valedictorian. Quang will be studying biology at UCSD and has plans to attend medical school.

"NNOA is actively investing in the future by providing scholarships to these students," said Capt. Cedric Pringle, SDNNOA senior advisor. "They represent the best and brightest. They're the type of high achievers our Services need."

Cmdr. Jerome White, SDNNOA president, presented scholarship award certificates to the recipients.

"The scholarship program provides an opportunity for the organization to partner with the community to recognize past accomplishments and future potential of local high school students" said White. "We hope our scholarship recipients will consider the Sea Services as their employer of choice after completing their academic endeavors."

The SDNNOA scholarship is made possible due to successful fundraising and generous donations throughout the year. Students are selected on the basis of academic proficiency, extracurricular activities, character, all-around ability, and financial need.

National Naval Officers Association actively supports the sea services in the development of a diverse officer corps through recruitment, mentoring, and professional development. Since its founding in 1972, NNOA has established and maintained a positive image of the sea services in the local community. The organization is sanctioned by the Secretary of the Navy and is a member of the Navy and Marine Corps Council.

For more information on the National Naval Officers Association, visit www.nnoa.org .

For more news from Commander, Naval Air Forces, visit www.navy.mil/local/airpac/ .