CPT Cameron Noon's Environmental Science class gave presentations on alternative fuels to an audience that included school president, RADM J. Scott Burhoe, and the Academy's Vice President of Operations, COL Steve Macek. The cadets researched and presented on a variety of topics including the use of biomass fuels, fusion, and solar energy initiatives.
RADM Burhoe asked follow-up questions of the cadets following their individual presentations and told the group that he was "still looking for good ideas to heat the Academy's swimming pool at zero cost, and I took a lot of notes on your presentations today."
As part of the One Subject Plan at Fork Union Military Academy, teachers incorporate opportunities for research, writing, and public speaking into their class curriculum, regardless of whether the subject being taught is science, language, math, or social studies. This approach helps student build their written and oral communication skills as well as reinforce their mastery of the subject material being learned. The cadets today showed admirable command of their topics, using PowerPoint slides as supporting graphics, addressing their audience confidently, and never reading the projected text verbatim from the screen. These are presentation skills that would be gratefully welcomed in most corporate meeting rooms, and are not often seen from high school students, but they are public speaking skills that are well-developed by cadets at Fork Union Military Academy.
For more photos from some of today's presentations, see our online photo galleries.