Alexandria High’s dual event features historic medal ceremony

ALEXANDRIA, La. (WNTZ) – Alexandria Senior High School will host a dual celebration Thursday, honoring both the 250th birthday of the United States Marine Corps and the 44th anniversary of the school’s Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (MCJROTC) program.

The event will take place at the ASH Auditorium, 800 Ola Lane, beginning with a medal presentation at 12:40 p.m. followed by the birthday ceremony at 1 p.m.

The celebration will feature the traditional Marine Corps cake-cutting ceremony and a historic award presentation, marking the first time in school history that an ASH cadet has received the nation’s highest medal awarded to a high school JROTC student. The honor is one of only 14 medals awarded nationwide this year out of more than 450,000 JROTC cadets, including over 30,000 Marine cadets.

The medal will be presented by the Louisiana Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

Master Sergeant Truman Sullivan Sr., USMC (Ret.), one of the original Marine instructors who helped establish the ASH MCJROTC program 44 years ago, will serve as guest of honor.

The ceremony will include ASH MCJROTC cadets, instructors, community members, and local veterans, celebrating the program’s long-standing tradition of excellence and service to Central Louisiana.