SAN ANGELO, Texas — There are only six military senior colleges across the U.S. and The Citadel in South Carolina just happens to be one of them.
Christopher Banks, a senior JROTC student at Central High School in San Angelo, was recently awarded an $180,000 scholarship to attend The Citadel.
Banks has been an active member of the JROTC for four years and he is one of approximately 500-650 seniors to have been awarded this financial opportunity.
Back in December, Banks found out he was chosen to receive the Citadel scholarship, allowing him to become an official military officer following graduation.
"I didn't believe it at first," he said. "It was a good surprise, a very welcome surprise."
Banks first learned about the opportunity from a sergeant who suggested he should apply. After some consideration, the senior decided to go for it.
However, applying for such a rigorous scholarship was not an easy process.
"There's a lot of screening," San Angelo Staff Sergeant recruiter Alcantar said. "There's a lot of holding the applicant accountable...," he added.
Alcantar said the seniors must interview with a Marine Corps officer and they must also be physically and academically inclined.
This includes being able to do at least 20 push ups, having straight A's in school and getting high scores on standardized tests.
The recruiting team in San Angelo hopes to encourage more JROTC members to apply for the scholarship and one way of doing so is spreading the word.
As for Banks, he first learned he received the scholarship back in early-mid December, but not until the recruiters and his parents had already found out in an attempt to make it a surprise.
Now, he is excited to carry on his family legacy.
"[My] dad being in the military...then grandfathers on both sides, it just, it runs in the family," Banks said.
Looking forward, Banks hopes to stay busy while serving his country.
"I just want to give back because I feel that service is, you could say, full circle," he said.
"That if you serve, it'll eventually come back to you."
Banks' parents had previously decided to move to South Carolina and now that their son will be attending The Citadel, they have one extra reason to go.
