December is always an exciting and busy time of year for your cadets as they wrap up their studies for first semester, complete final projects and term end exams, and participate in the variety of holiday activities that take place here. As you know, this excitement was highlighted by the football team’s repeat victory over Navy and our bringing the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy home for the first time in more than 20 years. As you prepare to celebrate the holidays with your sons and daughters, I’d like to thank you for your continued support of West Point and the Corps of Cadets. You can be very proud of these incredible young men and women, and I hope you’ll enjoy your time together over the winter break. As you’re celebrating, please remember those who are deployed this holiday season around the globe, and keep them, and their families and loved ones, in your thoughts and prayers. From our family to yours, Happy Holidays and a safe, prosperous and healthy New Year.

Our best wishes to everyone for a safe and happy holiday season and an excellent new year. Thank you to everyone for your continued support of West Point and the Long Gray Line!

The Army West Point Football team captured a thrilling 14-13 victory in the 118th playing of the Army-Navy Game on December 9. With the win, Army got to Welcome Home the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy for the first time since 1996. The game came down to a nail-biting 48-yard field goal attempt from Navy with three seconds left to play. But the Midshipmen’s kick sailed wide left sparking chaos on the Army sidelines. Full story. Photos.

WPAOG and several West Point Parents Clubs provided fresh hot popcorn and treats to cadets for a few hours on the evening of December 19. Cadets were able to stop by Grant Hall and grab a snack as they prepared to Beat the Dean! It was a popular stop for the evening, as we served about ten pounds of popcorn and countless snack treats! The staff of the USMA Library also teamed with us and other Parents Clubs to provide snacks at the library!

Become a West Point leader—join the Superintendent’s Circle today! Make a gift of $1,000 or more before December 31 to the West Point Parents Fund and you’ll receive a special membership card and pin; invitations to the annual Superintendent’s Circle weekend, Projects Day, the Superintendent’s Circle Tailgate, and other exclusive events; and have the opportunity to interact with the Superintendent, key Academy staff, and fellow donors. Superintendent’s Circle members take a leading role in strengthening the Margin of Excellence and in sustaining West Point as a leader in all endeavors. Thank you for your support!

Four USMA 2018 Cadets have been named to the 2019 class of 142 Schwarzman Scholars, representing students from 39 countries and 97 universities worldwide: Megan Bryn, Netteange “Nette” Monaus, Brad Torpey and Danny Nguyen. Schwarzman Scholars have demonstrated exemplary leadership qualities and potential to bridge and understand cultural and political differences. They will study for a year at Tsinghua University in Beijing. Three USMA 2018 cadets have been named as Anna Sobol Levy Fellows: Lexie Johnson, Scott Buchanan, and Sean O’Brien. The ASL Foundation provides fellowships for U.S. college graduates to study in Israel, in order to establish better understanding and communication between future leaders of the two countries. Read more.

As part of his capstone project, Cadet Jacob Marchillo ’18, a geospatial information science honors major, constructed an Augmented Reality Sand Table (ARES) as a teaching tool for students and cadet development. Marchillo is attempting to construct and apply an augmented reality system for the 3-dimensional display of geospatial data, using the elevation data and aerial imagery of Pointe du Hoc, the 100-foot cliff overlooking the English Channel on the coast of Normandy in France. ARES will be utilized to visualize the physical terrain of Pointe du Hoc to better understand the terrain’s impact on this portion of the D-Day invasion. This project is in support of a larger project to create an augmented reality Pointe du Hoc experience in support of ‘The History of Military Art.’ Full Story.

Each year, Do More Together, the Black/African-American Alumni WPAOG affinity group, partners with a local high school during Army-Navy Football weekend to spread awareness of USMA and the benefits of serving in uniform. On December 8, Do More Together teamed up with the Cadet Gospel Choir and the Department of Behavioral Sciences & Leadership to do volunteer outreach at Philadelphia’s Lincoln High School, sharing stories of leadership, success and service. The group of alumni volunteers ranged from class years 2003 to 2014. Additionally, COL Deborah McDonald ’85 and 1LT Justin Trimble ‘14 from USMA Admissions provided information about the West Point application process. Congressman Brendan Boyle’s (PA-13) office was represented as well, to ensure that students learned about the specifics of the nomination process in their district. Over 30 students from Lincoln High School and 25 JROTC cadets from the Philadelphia city-wide battalion attended.

Growing up, young aspiring athletes always have someone they look up to. Whether it’s a professional athlete or a coach, kids always try to mold their game and their lives based on someone they admire. Army West Point Men's Basketball player Jordan Fox ’19 didn't have to look any further than his grandfather. This inspirational story explains a bond between two men that started in youth basketball when Fox’s grandfather taught him the game he loves so much.

Award-winning author and director Sebastian Junger (director of the documentaries “Restrepo” and “Korengal”) spoke to several hundred cadets in Robinson Auditorium November 16 about his newest documentary, “Syria’s War: Hell on Earth,” which chronicles the humanitarian disaster unfolding in Syria and traces the rise of the Islamic State. The discussion covered a wide range of topics, from military leadership and humanitarian interventions to race relations within the military and the difficulty of reintegrating our Soldiers back into society following their deployments. Full story.

Two teams of five cadets from across four sections of Advanced Philosophy and Ethical Reasoning won a “virtual debate” with two teams of five students from Notre Dame de Namur University (NDNU), a San Francisco Bay Area school. The virtual debate was a “Lincoln-Douglas” style debate that took place on a private YouTube channel over a 30-day period. The assignment was to debate the ethics of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Future Wars. The debate focused on an issue of philosophical and political concern that the cadets and NDNU students analyzed from a moral perspective: Is it morally superior and virtuous to pursue and engage in non-lethal warfare (NLW) rather than to pursue and engage in conventional lethal warfare? Full story.

Priced now at only $52.50 – the West Point Register of Graduates, WPAOG’s most historic publication, and the ultimate West Point reference book, is still available. More than 1200 pages of entries detail the military careers of every graduate from 1802-2015, along with class crests, mottos, and USMA facts and history. This handsome gold-embossed clothbound vintage design edition includes custom-designed map endpapers. Visit WPAOG’s Gift Shop online or call 800.426.4725 to order your copy now.