U.S. Rep. Slotkin honors local students
Rep. Elissa Slotkin (MI07) held a special ceremony and reception on May 4 to celebrate the nine future Cadets and Midshipmen who have been appointed to U.S. Service Academies. Five of those appointees are from Oakland County schools.
Because the application and nomination process began in the fall of 2022, prior to Congressional redistricting, the students come from across the former 8th Congressional District — Ingham, Livingston, and North Oakland counties.
Each Congressional office is invited to nominate up to ten candidates each year, per open vacancy, at U.S. Service Academies which include the U.S. Military Academy, Naval Academy, Coast Guard Academy, Merchant Marine Academy and Air Force Academy.
• Liliane Aittama, U.S. Air Force Academy, South Lyon East High School.
Aittama is a senior at South Lyon East and was born in France, where she lived for two years, and also spent two years in China.
She is an avid hiker and accomplished Scottish dancer. She also has been running races since she was a child and has led her
high school team to top finishes in both cross country and track.
• Jared Cypher, U.S. Naval Academy, Oxford High School.
Cypher is a member of the Class of 2023 and said it has always been his dream to attend the United States Naval Academy.
He is the son of a US Marine Corps veteran and plans to study operations research and hopes to minor in Chinese, which he has already studied for seven years.
Jared plays varsity soccer and lacrosse, serves as a mentor for younger students in the community, and is a member of the National Honors Society. In the wake of the mass shooting that took the lives of four students at his high school in November 2021, Jared and a group of his classmates started a nonprofit organization to help other communities affected by school shootings.
• Brianna Johnston, U.S. Naval Academy, OKMA International Academy, Lake Orion.
Johnston will become the fourth generation military member in her family and is a senior at OKMA International Academy where she will be graduating summa cum laude with her International Baccalaureate degree.
In addition to her academic accomplishments, Brianna is a talented flutist, a leader in her school and local community, and rows crew on the Detroit Boat Club Crew located on Belle Isle. She plans to major in mechanical engineering, join the rowing team and hopes to become a naval aviator.
• Vlad Lovin, U.S. Air Force Academy, Culver Military Academy, Rochester Adams High School.
Vlad Lovin is from Lake Orion, but is currently a senior at Culver Military Academy in Culver, Indiana. Before Culver, he attended Rochester Adams High School.
He has been involved in fencing since he was 11 years old, and has participated in numerous regional and national tournaments. At Culver Academy, he has continued to fence on the competitive team, and has competed at the Junior Olympics three times.
He’s also part of the robotics team, and has twice qualified for the World Championships and says his goal is to make a positive impact on the world.
• MacKenzie Ayriss, U.S. Air Force Academy, Georgia Military College/Clarkston High School.
Ayriss graduated from Clarkston High School in 2022, where she was a member of Young Marines, National Honor Society, the school volleyball team, and the swim team.
She has spent the past year attending the Air Force Academy’s preparatory program at Georgia Military College, and has already completed most of the credits toward her associate’s degree.
Ayriss said she was inspired to apply to a service academy by her father, a 20-year Marine Corps veteran.
Ayriss, Johnston and Cypher were also nominated by Sen. Debbie Stabenow in January 2023.