Lawton, area students nominated to U.S. Service academies

Washington, D.C. — Lawton and area youth are among the student nominated by U.S. Fourth District Congressman Tom Cole as 2025 Service Academy Nominees from Oklahoma’s Fourth District.

The students will be considered for a full offer appointment to the U.S. Air Force Academy, the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, or the U.S. Naval Academy.

Cole’s appointees included:

U.S. Air Force Academy: Patrick Mackey Jr., Lawton, MacArthur High.

U.S. Military Academy at West Point: Andrew Permenter, Cache, Cache High.

U.S. Naval Academy: Jaxson Kalla, Lawton, Cache High; and Jace Williams, Elgin, Elgin High.

The congressional nomination process for the academies is highly competitive. Applicants are evaluated for academic performance and standing, including class rank, SAT/ACT scores and school records. Other criteria considered by Cole and the recommendation panel includes athletics, physical fitness, extracurricular activities, recommendations, and leadership potential. Upon congressional nomination, students become eligible for consideration to receive an appointment to the service academy (or academies) to which they applied.