Author: Stephanie Stark

Ms. Stark’s Photography 1 class at Treasure Coast High School is learning how the camera was invented.  Students learned about the humble beginnings of the camera by building their personal camera obscura (Latin for dark room)  and turning their classroom into a giant camera obscura.  Through this, they learned how light travels in a straight line causing the image to project inverted, and how the size of the aperture affects the projected image.  By learning about the camera obscura, the students have an understanding of what happens inside their cameras. In the class, students covered the windows with black plastic. … Read More

The Air Force Junior ROTC instructors and cadets of Treasure Coast High School in Port St. Lucie, FL earned an overall unit assessment score of “Exceeds Standards”, the highest rating attainable, during their evaluation on 6-February 2023. Instructors were lauded for creating a dynamic and supportive learning environment coupled with excellent community outreach. The instructors provided outstanding leadership in administering the cadet-centered citizenship program. The Treasure Coast High School cadets performed exceptionally well and took great pride in leading and accomplishing their unit goals. The outstanding efforts of the Cadet Leadership Staff have the unit on track to receive the … Read More

The Treasure Coast High School Robotics team, made up of members from the Robotics Club and AFJROTC Robotics Team, competed at Imokalee High School near Naples in a day-long VEX robotics competition along with more than 20 other robotics teams. Beyond science and engineering principles, VEX encourages creativity, teamwork, leadership, and problem-solving among groups. The TCHS team designed and constructed a robot to accomplish prescribed competition tasks both in “student-driven” and autonomous modes.  The TCHS team made it to the event finals before being eliminated and learned a lot while also having a great experience.

More than 100 AFJROTC cadets from Treasure Coast High School marched in the parade honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  It was an honor for the Corps of Cadets to show its pride and professionalism and engage with the Treasure Coast community.

Members of the Treasure Coast AFJROTC Color Guard, Drill, and Air Commando Teams recently competed at the Annual Sickles High School Drill Meet in Tampa. It was a very tough competition and the teams represented TCHS very well. The following awards were won: Air Commandos 3rd place Physical Fitness Team, Freshman Drill Team 3rd Place Regulation Drill, Regulation Drill Flight 3rd Place, Armed Squad Drill 2nd Place, Color Guard 2nd Place, and Freshman Drill Uniform Inspection 1st Place. TCHS AFJROTC’s own Cadet Kaylie Reichert was recognized as the top Female Physical Fitness competitor and was named “Iron Cadet.”

The Treasure Coast AFJROTC was recently recognized by Chief Thomas Mateo, SSgt, USMC (Retired) a six-time Purple Heart Recipient and President of the Treasure Coast Chapter of the Purple Heart Association, for the Honor Guard POW/MIA presentation at the recent DDS4Vets Gala. Chief Mateo, who is also a retired Police Chief from the local area, was at one time the youngest U.S. Military member in Vietnam. Chief Mateo said of the team, “You were sharper than any group of Marines or other services that I have ever seen”, and he also was very touched and impressed with the impact the … Read More

Members of the Treasure Coast High School’s Varsity Color Guard were honored to be invited to present the colors at the Orlando Magic’s Hometown Heroes game on Friday, November 11, in honor of Veterans Day. The team, commanded by Cadet Major Rachel Lee, also included Cadet Lt Col Amanda Huntington, Cadet 1st Lt Jayden Beiter, and Cadet  Lt 1st Lt David Ritchie.

On October 8, TCHS AFJROTC cadets served at the DDS For Vets Annual Fundraising Gala. DDS for Vets is an organization that raises money to support wounded veterans by gifting them service dogs. Each service dog costs $100K to train over a yearlong period, so the DDS Gala was an important fundraising event for DDS. TCHS color guard posted and retired the colors and its POW/MIA honor guard team performed a ceremony in remembrance of Prisoners of War and Missing in Action. The event was attended by many VIPs, including Congressman Brian Mast.

The Treasure Coast High School AFJROTC Air Commando Team kicked off its season by running in the Treasure Coast Food Bank “Outrun Hunger” 5K on Saturday, September 17th. The 5K race, organized by the Treasure Coast Food Bank as a fundraiser and to raise awareness of food challenges in the Treasure Coast, was run along the intercoastal waterway in Ft. Pierce. Along with hundreds of other runners from the area, the TCHS cadets ran as a formation and helped support the Food Bank’s mission to end hunger in our region. The Air Commando Team will now begin fitness training to … Read More

The TCHS AFJROTC POW/MIA Ceremonial Team performed on August 13, 2022, for the Florida League of Cities Annual Conference in Hollywood, Florida, attended by all Vice-Mayors from the entirety of the state of Florida. TCHS Cadets were specifically invited to perform by our own Vice Mayor of Port St Lucie, Jolien Caraballo, who was inducted as the League President for 2022-2023. The team was honored to pay tribute to our nation’s heroes and received a standing ovation from the attendees.

Over the two-day weekend of February 12th and 13th, Cadets at Treasure Coast High School participated in the Bataan Death March. The march was originally the forcible transfer by the Imperial Japanese Army of 60,000 – 80,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war along a 60–69-mile march. Around 5,000 to 18,000 Filipinos died and up to 500 to 650 Americans died as well. While our 14-mile march could not compare to the harsh conditions the Americans and Filipinos’ faced in the 1940s, the ability to honor the men that fought for our country and died for a cause is a … Read More

Treasure Coast High School AFJROTC cadets attended the Kennedy Space Center as a Cadet in Action field trip. They got to experience a rocket launch by the US Space Force and the cadets were in awe of the sights and sounds of the rocket. The cadets got a chance to look back to a part of U.S. History and experience an attraction unlike any other in the world. The Kennedy Space Center is the only place in the U.S. where actual space shuttles and rockets launch into the skies and make history and is still operational today. The trip supported … Read More

On Monday, January 17, 90 Treasure Coast High School AFJROTC cadets led the high schools in the annual Martin Luther King Day parade in Fort Pierce. On MLK Day, we are encouraged to reflect on the principles of racial equality and nonviolent social change espoused by Dr. King. By participating in this parade, we were able to represent Treasure Coast High School and honor Dr. King and his ability to unite people of color and start the Civil Rights movement. Our cadets got to learn and experience the effects of Dr. King and the positive effects he had on the … Read More

Treasure Coast High School JROTC cadets visited the Stuart Air Show this past Friday to further their education in aeronautical science. At the Air show, cadets toured multiple aircraft such as the C-130 and the A-10, military aircraft that they still use today! The significance of this trip was to enable our cadets to have a fun experience as they learned about the principles of flight. All the cadets that attended had an eye-opening experience of being a real pilot and were encouraged to continue their future in aerospace and aeronautics.

On November 9th, the Army recruiters from St. Lucie County brought an armed transport and a flight simulator to Treasure Coast High School. They let our JROTC cadets and some onlooking fellow students fly a helicopter on the simulator and explore the armed car in the front seat, passenger seat, back seat, and the gun mount. They explained each part of the truck and opened their eyes to some experiences they may get from joining the Army. They had a pull-up bar to test our strength and handouts to explain further all the opportunities you may get from the Army. … Read More

Treasure Coast High School AFJROTC Cadets participated in a community service project titled Pack the House. They made holiday care packages for families in need to have meals during Thanksgiving. In each box, cadets stuffed a variety of canned and dry foods for those who may not be able to afford them themselves. Twenty-five cadets completed about 4,000 care packages in total with all the other volunteers that participated to achieve their goal of 15,000 packages. This project was a truly inspiring event that ensured our cadets will take this to their future as leaders and citizens who will take … Read More

Three senior cadets in the AFJROTC program at TCHS–Mateo Franqui, Dominik Heintz, and Alex Antonakos–earned their Part 107 license through the Federal Aviation Administration. By passing this rigorous exam, they can operate Small Unmanned Aircraft (SUAS) commercially and in the national airspace system, opening tremendously lucrative employment opportunities. Their certification and licensing are the result of succeeding in the classroom through two years of dual enrollment classes taught and offered by the TCHS AFJROTC program through Embry Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU). The ERAU dual enrollment program continues to grow at TCHS and is open to all AFJROTC cadets who meet … Read More