Royal High School MCJROTC wins National Air Rifle League match

The Royal High School MCJROTC defeated Natchitoches Central (La.) AJROTC 935.1 to 822.8 last week in the National Air Rifle League.

Diego Martinez, who shot a 236.8, led Royal. Returning contributing members were Jesus Morales, Nathan Covington and Jenna Johnson. They are from Pattison. LaShan Bland coaches the team.

Royal is ranked 41^st in the Distinguished Division, and 8^th in the Marine Corps JROTC Conference. Royal has a 2-4 record.

Royal will next compete against Grove City (Ohio) Christian School. Grove City has a 2-3 record.

The Orion Scoring System sponsors a national team league for high school teams and junior rifle clubs. The league has two parts. An eight-week regular season is happening now, followed by the post-season.

The Champions Division is reserved for the top teams in the country. The top eight teams from the Champions Division regular season will compete in a single elimination tournament for the league championships.

The Distinguished Division are the second tiered teams, followed by the Elite Division.

WGU Texas’ Teachers College provides opportunities to ease tuition costs during national teacher shortage

The Teachers College at WGU Texas’ Western Governors School of Education has launched a scholarship program for current and future education professionals wishing to purse bachelor’s or master’s degree programs at its Teachers College.

Each WGU Loves Teachers and Become a Teacher scholarship is valued up to $4,000 and designed to help current teachers improve their skill set in the classroom or move into administration, and support future teachers in obtaining the required credentials to start a rewarding career as an educator. The accredited, nonprofit college’s commitment to keeping costs lowered reduces the need for student borrowing, resulting in average graduate debt that is about half the national average.

“WGU’s Teachers College has a history of maintaining remarkably affordable, flat-rate tuition that allows students to pursue their professional passions without the burden of student loan debt,” Stacey Ludwig Johnson, acting WGU senior vice president of WGU and executive dean of the School of Education, said. “With these scholarships, we continue our commitment of offering accessible educational opportunities focused on the individual so that each and every student, regardless of circumstances, can see themselves on the path to a degree.”

According to data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Texas has an unmet need of approximately 20,181 teachers for the 2022-23 school year, including elementary, secondary, and special education. As part of a solution to this teacher shortage, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, WGU’s Teachers College has graduated more than 32,700 students nationwide between Jan. 1, 2020 and Aug. 31, 2022 who have gone on to become certified teachers or advanced in their school-leader roles with 2,029 of those graduates in Texas.

“Our students deserve certified teachers who will help them reach their fullest potential,” Linda Battles, WGU Texas chancellor, said. “That’s why we must invest in and support our teachers. One way to do this is through these scholarships that support our efforts to ensure future educators can earn their teaching degrees so that all students have access to a diverse group of educators. We want teachers to be good educators, and successful professionals, with little debt and room for continued growth. Our Teachers College is committed to making sure we advance the education profession.”

In the last 20 years, the Teachers College has conferred more than 70,000 degrees to educators across all 50 states and has approximately 35,000 students currently enrolled. The college provides a broad portfolio of dozens of degree pathways in a student-centered, competency-based model with flexible scheduling to learn where and when students want, within each six-month term. This enables students to progress through their courses as soon as they demonstrate skills mastery.

New and enrolling WGU students may apply by Dec. 31 for the WGU Loves Teachers scholarship or the Become a Teacher scholarship by visiting wgu.edu/aew.

WGU’s Teachers College programs have been continuously accredited since 2006. They are currently accredited by both the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) and the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP), a prestigious combination of accreditations. To learn more about WGU’s Teachers College and its academic programs, visit wgu.edu/online-teaching-degrees.