Tiana Johnson plans to make a career in the military after attending West Point. Tiana Johnson photo.
Tiana Johnson. Remember that name. You may one day be able to say you remember her when …
The East Bay High School student is on her way to West Point after she graduates. Forget Harvard or Yale — acceptance to West Point is one of the toughest for any high-school graduate.
Just getting a look in the door at West Point requires:
• High scores on standardized achievement tests like the SAT
• Passing a medical exam
• Meeting physical qualifications
• A nomination from the vice president, a member of Congress, or a congressional delegate
And, according to her classmates and teacher, no one deserves it more.
“She is a very determined young lady,” said Col. Heriberto Garcia, who oversees the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program at East Bay, where Johnson is a member. “She’s very centered and very structured. She establishes goals and objectives for herself, and she meets them,” the colonel said.
“She’s the type of person that if something needs to get done, she will get it done,” said Bryan Santos, a classmate of Johnson in the East Bay ROTC program who believes she will excel at West Point. Honest, intelligent and trustworthy, Johnson is also always willing to do anything for a friend, Santos said. “She exemplifies all the U.S. Army values — loyalty, duty, respect and selfless service.”
Normally reserved, Johnson, 17, acknowledged she did break out into a “little dance” when she found out she had been accepted by West Point last month.
“I was pretty happy and relieved,” said Johnson, who is the top-ranked cadet in her ROTC program. “I am a pretty chilled person mostly, but I did do a little dance.”
She first thought of applying to the elite military academy in upstate New York last year when she went to a six-day summer program at the school. A quick exposure to the school’s legendary discipline where students are up at the crack of dawn and train all day, and Johnson knew she was in the right place. “The experience is for kids who might not understand the military and let them make up their minds if this is something they want to do.”
For Johnson, there was no doubt. “When I went there, I knew this is where I wanted to be. I like structure and discipline. I have fun, too, but there are times when I just want to be serious. [West Point] is more serious, and that is what I want.”
Johnson plans to make the military her career.
“I plan to have 20-plus years in the military and then retire,” she said.
Both of her parents, military veterans, are proud of their daughter.
“My mom told me, ‘Great job. I am proud of you,’ and my dad told me how he thought I was a natural born leader and how if I set my mind to things I can do anything.”
Johnson is one of those students to whom you just need to set out your expectations as a teacher and “she runs with it,” Col. Garcia said.
Her demeanor also wins people over. “She has a very pleasant personality and gets along with people really well,” Garcia said. “Whatever her parents did in raising her, we need to find out and create a company and sell it because she is just an awesome lady.”
A retired U.S. Army colonel who has mentored officers throughout his career, Garcia has no doubt Johnson will succeed at West Point.
He said, “I have seen people from all parts of the world and every part of the United States and seen them develop, and I believe that her future is just bright. I truly believe she will be an extraordinary officer in the Army. I have no doubt if she decides to make it her career, she will be a general officer, that’s just how good she is.”
