MCAS Cherry Point  –   A Cherry Point Sailor will continue his Navy career later this year by embarking on a rigorous course of academic and physical development prior to attending the U.S. Naval Academy. 

Hospital Corpsmen Third Class Miguel Rodriguez, a Corpsman serving aboard Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point, will attend the Naval Academy Preparatory School in Newport, Rhode Island this Summer and begin the rigorous journey to become a Navy Officer.

“I want to attend NAPS because it is renowned for fostering both mental and academic strength,” said Rodriguez. 

What I learn there will prepare me for challenges I will encounter at the Naval Academy and afterward in my career as an officer, he continued.

The Naval Academy Preparatory School’s mission on its website is to “enhance midshipman candidates’ moral, mental, and physical foundations to prepare them for success at the U.S. Naval Academy.”  Candidates attend the ten-month program beginning in August and participate in a rigorous course of academic, physical and leadership development prior to starting their studies at the Naval Academy.

“By being competitively selected to go to NAPS, HM3 Rodriguez has an exceptionally rare and awesome opportunity to better prepare himself for the rigors of a USNA midshipman life,” said Navy Commander Brendon Tillman, the clinic’s Chief Medical Officer and Rodriguez’ supervisor.  “Ten months at NAPS and 4 years at USNA will not only shape him into a well-developed junior Naval or Marine Corps officer, but it will also enrich him with a lifetime of lasting memories.”

A native of Brownsville, Texas, Rodriguez currently serves as an Advanced Radiology Technologist at the clinic and distinguished himself among his peers in July 2023 by passing the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists Registry Exam.  He is responsible for daily management of the facility’s Radiology staff serving military members and beneficiaries residing in communities in and around Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point.

Rodriguez credits his leadership and peers for assisting him in his development as a junior Sailor and Corpsman since arriving at the clinic in March 2023.

“From the moment I got here, they gave me the opportunity to strive and prove myself in this command,” said Rodriguez.  “For that, I am eternally grateful.”