Four cadets from South View High School have earned a place in the 2026 JROTC Leadership & Academic Bowl (JLAB) Championship in Washington, D.C., following a competitive selection process that began with more than 5,000 teams worldwide.
The South View High School JROTC Leadership Team advanced through two online qualifying rounds to secure a spot among the top teams in the nation. The team includes:
Cadet First Lieutenant Nehemiah Frith, 10th grade
Cadet Staff Sergeant Raylee Aguas, 10th grade
Cadet Staff Sergeant Aliya Hall, 10th grade
Cadet Corporal Graeme Dinwiddie, 10th grade
The cadets will compete at The Catholic University of America June 12–16, 2026, in an all-expenses-paid national championship event.
Out of 5,163 teams worldwide, 108 teams representing 98 high schools across 43 states advanced to the championship round. Teams from Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and Department of Defense Education Activity schools in Japan will also compete.
The JLAB competition assesses cadets’ knowledge in core academic areas, including mathematics, science and language arts. Leadership teams are evaluated on leadership values, skills and citizenship. The competition also includes questions on current events and financial literacy, with financial literacy components sponsored by the USAA Educational Foundation.
Texas advanced 21 teams to the championship, followed by California with 10. Florida and Tennessee each advanced eight teams, while Alabama and Georgia each advanced six teams.
“For South View High School, this achievement represents far more than a trip to Washington, D.C. It reflects months of preparation, discipline, sacrifice, teamwork and the transformational leadership development that JROTC programs are designed to instill,” said Retired Sgt. Maj. Ruby Murray, senior Army JROTC instructor at South View High School.
About the JROTC Leadership & Academic Bowl
The JROTC Leadership & Academic Bowl is sponsored by the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force and U.S. Coast Guard and is organized by the College Options Foundation. For more than 20 years, the foundation has supported JROTC cadets through national competitions, college readiness resources and academic enrichment opportunities.
