Meet Your Neighbor

Yecenia Diaz

June 23, 2007

College Student
Appointed to U.S. Military Academy West Point

Sun Prairie High School graduate Yecenia Diaz remembers her advanced placement chemistry class well. It was the first really challenging course she'd encountered.

"It was so good for me," she explains. "It taught me discipline and how to accept failure." The class also prepared her for other accelerated coursework.

Now, a year after graduation -- and with two semesters at UW-Madison under her belt -- Diaz is ready for her next great challenge: an appointment to West Point Military Academy.

On Wednesday, Diaz departs for basic training at the historic institution's New York campus. This intense orientation to the military is a "major weed out process" for those who aren't ready for the physical and mental rigors of such training, she says.

Diaz, however, fully intends to be in class at the end of August, when the semester begins.

An idea is planted

"I hadn't even heard of West Point until the end of my junior year, and I first thought there was no way would I could ever get in," says Diaz.

But, true to her never-say-never spirit, she was accepted to the academy's summer leadership program for high school students and received an up-close-and-personal taste of military life.

"After that, I was hooked," she declares.

She then began the official application process and started preparing herself physically, dropping 45 pounds as a result of her training.

"I was never a runner and now I run three miles a day," she says. "I have this sense of accomplishment. That's the best thing for me."

Staying tough in a male-dominated arena

The biggest challenge Diaz anticipates is being one of the relatively few women in the male oriented class. Only about 15 percent of the 1,200 cadets are female.

"But I have learned to stand my ground," she says. Last summer she became certified as an umpire -- a position that frequently forced her to defend decisions.

Family ties

While challenging herself at West Point, Diaz will have plenty of support from her family, which includes parents Juan Sr. and Lucy Diaz; brothers David, 16, and Juan (of Monona); and a sister, also in the Army, in Albany, N.Y.

In fact, Diaz's extended family has a number of military members, including her uncle, a colonel in the Marines Corps.

Marching forward

Academically, Diaz is leaning toward a degree in sociology or psychology, but she has some time to think it over. All cadets must take the same standard courses their first year.

Upon graduation, she'll be obligated to serve five years of active duty and three years in the Reserves.

"I'm looking forward to the change," says Diaz of her new adventure. "I'm really into the whole structure and discipline thing. I've bettered myself in so many ways."