New Fairfield High students meet the PT test!
Civil Air Patrol program takes flight at New Fairfield High
By Erik Ofgang, CONTRIBUTING WRITER Danbury NewsTimes.com
Published: 09:45 p.m., Saturday, November 28, 2009
The Civil Air Patrol can be physically demanding, but Ryan Chapman doesn't complain.
"I like the physical training and the military parallels it has," he said.
Chapman is 16 and a junior at New Fairfield High School. He has been a member of the Civil Air Patrol's Danbury squadron for the past three years and has attained the rank of cadet captain.
He is now helping to lead a cadet Civil Air Patrol program at New Fairfield High School. He is one of 23 students in the program, which is the first Civil Air Patrol program to be offered as part of a school curriculum in Connecticut.
The Civil Air Patrol is the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, a nonprofit organization that has 57,000 members nationwide. The patrol performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions and was credited with saving 91 lives in the 2008 fiscal year.
There are five major tenets to the cadet program: leadership, aerospace education, physical fitness, character development and cadet activities.
Cadets are taught military drills and ceremony, and learn about flight. In addition, each cadet gets 10 flights in a Civilian Air Patrol plane.
New Fairfield High School social studies teacher Chris Welter is the captain of the new squadron, the 801st Cadet Flight. He has been impressed with the way students have responded to the program.
"It's been exciting to see them so energetic to be a part of it," he said
Welter, an Army veteran, said the program will help students prepare physically and mentally for a career in the military and will provide a career alternative for students who do not plan on going to college.
"You can never have too many options when you're a young person," he said.
Mike Chapleau, the assistant principal at New Fairfield High School, added, "It's also great for those who are college bound."
He said the cadets learn respect, leadership, discipline and other skills that will help them succeed.
The program in New Fairfield was started through the efforts of Brian Chapman's father, Ken Chapman, who is vice chairman of the Board of Education and active in the Civil Air Patrol.
Ken Chapman said he looked into creating an ROTC program at the high school, but New Fairfield High could not meet the space requirements. He thought the Civil Air Patrol would be a great alternative.
Chapman was member of the patrol's cadet program as a teenager in Atlanta and said it left a lasting impression on him and his fellow cadets. He would go on to graduate from West Point, while his cadet commander, Col. Eric Boe, would go on to become an astronaut.
Boe is slated to be the commander on the final shuttle flight next September.
Welter, New Fairfield Superintendent Joe Castagnola, and other officials helped Ken Chapman create the program.
Brian Chapman is already licensed to fly a glider solo and plans to get a regular pilot's license, as well. He plans to follow in his dad's footsteps and attend West Point or another military academy.
Among New Fairfield's recruits to the Civil Air Patrol is Chris Martin, 14.
"Flying's a big thing in my life," Martin said. He hopes to have a career in the Air Force and thinks the program will help him prepare. In addition, what he's learning as a cadet can be applied to other aspects of his life.
"It teaches you good values in life overall," he said. "It disciplines you."
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