Page 13 - The Edge: Issue 7

“Every day is something fresh, something new.”
-Dylan Black, 12
his entire life. He could have spent all his time doing things for band, and scraping by with the bare minimum in academics. Or, he could have made soccer his life, barring even other sports.
He could have taken either path, yet he did not. Instead, he took on all three and more. Making sure to do all of them to the best of his ability and having a great time while doing them. Sure, he did not have much free time, but that was more than fine
with him. Black liked being busy, doing the things he loved.
“I enjoy challenges and going after it... each and every day,” Black said.
In his sophomore year, he began to run track as well as ramp up on the academics, as well as doing much more with band. He had already begun working with the drum kit by
then, as well as keeping up with his other two instruments: bass and clarinet.
Yet that was not all he did, not by a long shot. He began playing in the pit orchestra for both school productions and, once, the Cocoa Village Playhouse—fitting, as his father was often involved with CVP productions. With each new challenge, he managed
to keep his other instruments and sports going.
In the late days of his junior year, Black applied first to the Naval
Academy Summer Seminar. Technically speaking, it is a summer camp—but it is so, so much more than that. It is, at its heart, a
taste of what life at the Academy is like.
Black liked what he tasted. Summer Seminar served to
motivate him even further, and he got down to business in applying for the Academy itself. It was not easy. To get into the Naval Academy, a potential applicant first needs a nomination from a member of Congress. No
nomination, no admission.
Through interviewing with several different
panels of people representing congressmen, Black got a nomination. Actually, he got two: one from Marco Rubio, and one from Bill Posey. Getting a nomination, however, was not everything, not even close. The admission rate for the Naval Academy, even with a nomination, is 8%. Compare that to Harvard (5%) and Yale (6%) and you have a pretty good picture of just how
difficult it is to get in.
But, in the end, Black made it.
“He is a self-motivated young man, one of high character. He’s an ideal candidate because you’re looking for intelligence, athletics, and character,” Krestan said. “He’s
a very well-rounded kid.”
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