GMC News

Growing up, Isaiah Wilkins dreamed of a career in the military. His mom showed him websites of the service academies the United States offers. But going to a service academy wasn’t on Wilkins mind. He didn’t think he’d excel enough academically to be accepted. That was until this year when he was granted an appointment to the United States Military Academy Preparatory School (USMAPS).

Wilkins got his GED at 16 years old and then started taking classes at a local community college. But it was when he got to Georgia Military College a little more than a year ago, that he says he really started putting in the hard work to make it to West Point Prep School.

“It has been one small step at a time and because of that I’m sure I will be extremely successful at USMAPS,” Wilkins said. “Each year only a select amount of students are chosen to attend this school so I knew that I had to put in a lot of effort and sacrifice in order to make this dream a reality.”

After two years at Georgia Military College, and while serving in the Georgia Army National Guard, Wilkins will begin his career at a West Point Prep School. Colonel Ralph Kauzlarich, Executive Director for GMC Milledgeville, Madison, and Sandersville  campuses, says seeing Wilkins achieve this goal of being accepted to West Point Prep School is a proud moment for not only him, but for GMC.

“Isaiah Wilkins is a great American with unlimited potential who has been a pleasure to work with these past two years,” Kauzlarich said. “Georgia Military College is extremely proud of the journey he is about to set out on with the end goal of becoming a West Point Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army.”

A graduate of the United States Military Academy West Point, Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV, President of Georgia Military College, says having another student going to a service academy prep school is a wonderful feeling.

“He’s a shining example of someone who joined our Corps of Cadets, saw the opportunities that were provided to him and took advantage of that, and in doing so, transformed who he was when he first arrived, to who he is now,” Caldwell said. “He’ll go on now and just make a real difference in the lives of other people, and of course of himself in the future. His appointment to USMAPS shows the potential of what can happen when someone decides they’re going to make a difference in their own life.”

Wilkins says it’s people like Colonel Kauzlarich and Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV, that he looks up to, and has them to thank for helping him get to USMAPS.

“GMC prepared me in every way from my teachers helping me get extra help in algebra and calculus, even to the West Point application process, to getting accepted, the people at Georgia Military College were always there for me,” Wilkins said. “If you utilize your resources at GMC, you can really ‘start here… go anywhere.’ Never ignore the help that’s right in front of you. It’s the leadership and the Cadet Corps at Georgia Military College that got me to West Point Prep School.”

Congratulations to Isaiah Wilkins on this stellar accomplishment!