Zodiac racing on the Hudson River, rappelling from the Air Assault Tower, learning to construct bridges in an engineering academic setting, or getting a taste of hand-to-hand combatives, the Summer Leaders Experience offered high school students from around the United States an opportunity to become familiar with West Point first-hand.
From May 30 through June 16, approximately 1,600 rising high school seniors came to the U.S. Military Academy during three five-day iterations to immerse themselves into the lifestyle of a cadet.
During the five days, the students engaged in the three pillars of leadership – academic, military and physical development – to understand what their 47-month cadet experience would be if they were accepted to the academy for the USMA Class of 2031.
The prospective high school students received a glimpse of the moral-ethical development embedded into the West Point values of the Cadet Honor Code and USMA motto, “Duty, Honor, Country,” as they would become not only skilled future officers both physically and intellectually, but also principled, disciplined and ready to serve the nation once they graduate from this institution.
Among the 1,600 students who participated in SLE were Nicolas Hunter and Cora Markley.
Hunter, who is from Phelps, New York, which is 30 minutes east of Rochester, is following in the footsteps of his uncle, Tom Nicot, who is a USMA Class of 2000 graduate. Markley, who is from London, Ohio, which is 30 minutes outside of Columbus, has an aunt and uncle who serve currently in the Air Force but no family member who has attended an academy.
Hunter and Markley each earned the Best Fitness Award during the final SLE iteration among more than 500 participants.
A team captain and defensive end for his high school football team and pitcher on the baseball team, Hunter was grateful for the cadets who allowed him an opportunity to achieve the award.
“It was definitely hard to learn the movements and exercises,” Hunter explained. “But I give a huge thank you to the people who took the time to assist me because their help gave me a chance to earn this award.”
Markley is a four-sport athlete in high school playing basketball, soccer, track and flag football and credits her parents for being advocates of her being an athlete.
“I’ve been working out since I was 4 years old,” Markley stated. “It’s really helped me develop into who I am and the ability to be able to receive this award.”
Gaining poise as a leader or challenging oneself on military confidence courses is a small part of the SLE experience, however, the road to get to SLE starts with a burning desire to be something bigger than yourself.
“I’ve always had an interest to serve in our country’s armed forces, and my main goal is to lead men and women in the Army,” Hunter said. “I believe this institution is the best shot I have at reaching my goal, so when I found out about the Summer Leaders Experience, I thought, ‘There is no better way to come here and check it out,’ and it’s been a truly amazing experience.”
Markley has always had a passion to serve and help people while growing up, so testing herself with SLE was an extension to seeing if coming to West Point and then serving the nation was next on her goals list.
“I wanted to see what West Point was about and had to offer, and it’s truly made me decide that I want to go here,” Markley replied enthusiastically. “This is where I want to be.”
The five-day SLE experience gave Hunter a chance to immerse himself in an environment that he was not familiar with but also gain valuable knowledge to what may await him.
“I definitely enjoyed the level of discipline that is at this academy,” Hunter acknowledged. “The structure allows for more meaningful activity here. Everything here is concise as they preach about making sure you’re doing the small things right – I think that’s a really good way to go about life.”
Markley couldn’t pick one particular thing she liked about West Point because she loved everything about it. She raved about the campus and its beauty, but most of all, she loved the people because the cadets made her “feel like it’s a family” at West Point.
Both Hunter and Markley believe the people are what makes West Point special from their five days here. Hunter visited other academies previously, and he recognized how West Point has statues of people whereas other academies have statues of objects.
“What stood out to me is I realized that here we value each other more than we value our objects,” Hunter said. “It’s definitely going to be the driving force of why I would choose this academy over another academy.”
Markley reiterated the “family” aspect in that the cadets made her feel like she “belonged here.”
“Everybody’s cheering you on to succeed while nobody leaves you behind,” she added. “Everybody pulls you along to better yourself.”
Each SLE participant spoke positively about their cadet leadership during their five days at West Point.
Hunter said that Class of 2028 Cadet Lauren Enterkin led open Q & A sessions for their group that allowed for personal questions and candid feedback on what the academy is genuinely like, which helped tremendously in making a better-informed decision about coming to the academy.
“It was one of the most helpful experiences I’d had throughout the week,” Hunter explained. “Her leadership really shined as she was able to connect with us on a personal level. I’m just really grateful to her and the way she led with her level of leadership and discipline.”
Markley declared that Class of 2028 Cadet Davis Austin was the best squad leader she could have asked for during SLE. He offered Q & A sessions as well, and she said she could ask him anything while he provided a humorous disposition to make it easier through the mental and physical struggles.
Before they both graduated from SLE and returned to their hometowns, Hunter and Markley reflected on what coming to West Point would mean to them and their futures if they return in June 2027 for the Class of 2031 Reception Day.
They both looked at West Point as a conduit to build their leadership skills and become great leaders in the future.
“I hope to refine my leadership skills by coming to West Point, and not just learn to lead and instruct people, but understand who you are working with in your group … it’s not just about directing orders, but understanding how everyone feels and works together, what their strong points and weaknesses are, so my hope is West Point is able to teach me about how to best understand that.”
Markley wants to be the best leader she can be, and feels West Point is the best place for her to achieve that as it allows people to “be able to depend on me and for me to be responsible for things that in critical situations they will need my help.”
Even though it was five days, what did each SLE participant learn about themselves that can help them achieve bigger things in their high school senior year and beyond?
“It taught me that I can go past my dark places,” Markley said, “and that I’m capable of more than I thought was possible.”
Hunter felt it taught him the importance of your mindset as he faced hardships both athletically and mentally throughout the week.
“It inspired in me the fact that as long as I put my mind to it and not give up, I can do this,” Hunter concluded. “You can truly accomplish anything you want in life. I believe in the brief time I was here that kind of mindset was felt throughout all these cadet candidates and throughout the entire population at West Point.”
| Date Taken: |
06.26.2026 |
| Date Posted: |
06.26.2026 16:02 |
| Story ID: |
568714 |
| Location: |
WEST POINT, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: |
14 |
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This work, SLE program offers glimpse of West Point’s immense possibilities for prospective high school students, by Eric Bartelt, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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