Photo By Christopher Jones | Milwaukee’s WISN 12 News Anchor and Reporter Dianna Gutierrez visits the Wisconsin...... read more read more
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Located in the heart of Fort McCoy, the Wisconsin Challenge Academy stands as a beacon of hope for at-risk youth, offering them the chance to change for the better.
Established in 1998 as part of the National Guard Youth Challenge Program, the academy has been instrumental in reclaiming the lives of thousands of youths falling behind in high school and providing them with the guidance needed to thrive in adulthood.
Per their website, Wisconsin Challenge Academy’s mission is, “To offer our cadets the opportunity to develop the strength of character and the life-skills necessary to become successful, responsible citizens.”
The voluntary “boot camp-like” program operates in three phases, each designed to instill discipline, foster personal growth, and facilitate successful reintegration into society. The pre-challenge phase, spanning the initial two weeks, serves as a crucial acclimation period where teenagers trade in their cellphones and bad habits for a new life immersed in discipline and education.
The residential phase next unfolds over 22 weeks, during which cadets undergo intensive training in core components such as academic excellence, physical fitness, and responsible citizenship.
The post-residential phase, extending up to one year after graduation, then ensures sustained support as cadets transition back to their communities.
Milwaukee’s WISN 12 News anchor and reporter, Dianna Gutierrez, recently visited Fort McCoy to spotlight the academy with a series that so far has captured the experience of cadets from the beginning of the semester to just over a month from graduation. Through interviews with staff and cadets, the series offered a firsthand view of the program’s profound impact on Wisconsin’s troubled youth.
Wisconsin Challenge Academy Director Joni Matthews expressed gratitude for the opportunity to showcase the program’s impact on the news.
“I love sharing what we do here,” Matthews said. “We have been around for 25 years, and I am appreciative of their willingness to learn and share the values of our program. Our cadets thoroughly enjoyed being interviewed by them…a moment I’m sure they will never forget.”
Cadet Jose Camarena shared his perspective on the academy’s life-changing effects and what his family thinks of his commitment to stay at Fort McCoy.
“The academy taught me some great traits that I now portray in everyday life. Some examples would be being respectful and having the discipline to have an open mindset in everything that I walk into,” Camarena explained. “My family is really supportive…knowing that they are proud of how far I’ve come gives me the motivation to continue striving to be a better person and to make them even more proud.”
Regarding what he thought of WISN’s recent news visit, Cadet Jose Camarena expressed, “I honestly feel proud of myself, knowing I possibly encouraged teens to attend The Wisconsin Challenge Academy. Realizing how much of an impact I could have on people my age, or anyone in general trying to reach something in life, really opened my eyes to how powerful some words that came out of my mouth can be.”
With a likely newfound courage to change for the better, the Wisconsin Challenge Academy’s 52nd class of cadets now possibly approach graduation with a brighter tomorrow filled with more promise and opportunity.
Fort McCoy’s motto is to be the “Total Force Training Center.” Located in the heart of the upper Midwest, Fort McCoy is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin.
The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984.
Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on the Defense Visual Information Distribution System at https://www.dvidshub.net/fmpao, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”
Also try downloading the Digital Garrison app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base. Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.”
| Date Taken: | 05.07.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 05.07.2024 16:40 |
| Story ID: | 470583 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WI, US |
| Web Views: | 307 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Fort McCoy’s Wisconsin Challenge Academy gets primetime news attention for helping at-risk youth, by Christopher Jones, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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