Samuel Manqueros has been honored with the Joseph C. Gilliam Academic Achievement Award and Cadet Achievement Ribbon in recognition of demonstrating academic excellence and superior leadership as a member of the Daviess County High School Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps.
An awards ceremony is planned for 9 a.m. April 14 in the DCHS auxiliary gymnasium.
Cadet Lt. Cmdr. Manqueros serves as chief of staff officer for the NJROTC at DCHS, where he maintains an overall grade point average of 3.609 and a Naval Science GPA of 3.96.
The letter of commendation from J.W. Hankins, Commander U.S. Navy (ret.) and Area 3 Manager of NJROTC, acknowledges Manqueros’ “superior performance as a cadet throughout his enrollment in the NJROTC program and in particular during school year 2019-2020.” The NJROTC Area 3 includes Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, West Virginia, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.
The letter goes on to say that Manqueros’ designation as the winner of the Gilliam Academic Achievement Award acknowledges him as “the top senior in Area 3 and he should be justifiably proud of his many outstanding accomplishments. … His outstanding academic performance and overall hard work at school and in the community reflect his commitment to excellence as a student, as a cadet and as a responsible citizen. Cadet Manqueros’ personal dedication, accomplishments and leadership reflect great credit upon himself and are in keeping with the highest traditions of the Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps program.”
In addition to participating in NJROTC, Manqueros is also a member of the National Honor Society and the DCHS CyberPatriot team, which has won the state championship for two years. He is a member of the orienteering team that finished in seventh place in the nation in 2019 and is a Kentucky Boys State representative.
As part of the criteria for earning the award, Manqueros was required to submit an essay describing the importance of demonstrating attention to detail in all aspects of his life.
Excerpts from his essay include his observation that “During school, I use (attention to detail) in many of my classes in order to assure that I can get good grades. Whether that be through note-taking, going over my questions on tests multiple times over to ensure my answers were correct, or even asking questions to make sure I understand what teachers are saying, I pay attention to anything that I encounter in school to make sure that I can do my absolute best.”
After graduating from DCHS, Manqueros plans to major in chemistry at Norfolk State University, and then join the U.S. Navy as a commissioned officer, where he said, “Attention to detail is highly valued and incredibly important in the fleet, and I hope to use this ability to both help myself and my fellow sailors thrive in any way that I can.”
DCHS Naval Science instructor Michael Gatrost, senior chief USN (ret.), said, “I’ve had the pleasure of teaching Sam for his four years at Daviess County High School. He has always been a leader in his unit and has stepped up for any event or job we needed.”
LCDR. Stephen M. White, USN (ret.), who serves as Senior Naval Science instructor at DCHS, said, “Sam has always been a hard charger. His dedication to the NJROTC Unit and DCHS is second to none. I am extremely proud to have had a small impact on his education.”
