Abigail Peterson is At Attention

Abigail Peterson is accustomed to being busy. During her senior year at Aubrey Rogers High School in Naples, she balanced playing five sports (basketball, lacrosse, swimming, cross country, and track), as well as a tough academic load that resulted in her being ranked third in her class with a 6.2 GPA. She earned 14 varsity letters at Aubrey Rogers and Lely High School and was a member of the National Honor Society and the National English Honor Society.

She also served as president of DECA (a global student organization that prepares high school and college students for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management) and served on Collier County Public Schools Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council. Additionally, Abigail was a member of Mu Alpha Theta (a mathematics-based honor society) and Academic WorldQuest, an organization that inspires high school students and teachers to embrace a culture of global engagement. She likewise was involved in student government and won the Aspirations in Computing award from the National Center for Women in Technology.

With this long list of accolades, it’s likely no surprise that Abigail was qualified to attend the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, where she’s currently completing her first year. “She is wise beyond her years and very mature,” says her mom, Amanda Peterson, a teacher at Corkscrew Elementary School in Naples.

While nobody in her family had gone to a military academy, Abigail started pondering the Naval Academy during her junior year. Her father, Adam Peterson—who teaches business, finance, and entrepreneurship classes and coaches the swim team at Aubrey Rogers—had previously taught students at Lely High School who attended the academy. Given his daughter’s academic and athletic successes, her leadership qualities, and her passion for travel (the Petersons took frequent road trips throughout the United States, primarily visiting National Parks), he thought the Naval Academy might be a good fit.

Abigail began investigating the Naval Academy and was accepted into a one-week summer seminar following her junior year. She took courses, went to meetings, and rigorously worked out, gauging what it would be like. “I loved it,” she says. Following this, she went through the application process, which included a nomination from U.S. Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart of Congressional District 26.

Abigail began her career at the Naval Academy by attending Plebe Summer, a six-week program after her senior year. During this period, there were no phones, no caffeine, lots of running (obstacle and rope courses), swimming, strenuous workouts, and many rules to be followed. “You can’t look at people while eating. You have to stare straight ahead; eyes on the boat,” Abigail relays. The program included “rack races.” This involved 30 teammates in the company taking their mattresses down, making their beds, and putting the mattresses back up within two minutes. If the mission failed, everyone did push-ups. “It was a very unique experience that got you into a military mindset,” Abigail says. 

During that six-week program, Adam and Amanda were only able to receive letters and two calls from Abigail. They searched through photos that were made available online daily, trying to spot their daughter. “Everyone was wearing uniforms, and it was tough to identify [faces], but when we saw Abigail smiling, we said, ‘It’s going to be OK,’” says Amanda. For parents like Adam and Amanda, the Southwest Florida USNA Parent Club provides support; this organization also hosts events for the parents of the 19 students from Southwest Florida currently at the academy.

Abigail admits difficulties the first year. “At first, it didn’t feel comfortable,” she says. “But you adapt and grow.” A member of the 2nd Company (called the Honey Badgers), she is on the verge of completing what has been a memorable year. Every six weeks, she received a new roommate. This is done so students can adjust to being flexible and can meet several potential long-term roommates. Midshipmen—the name for Naval Academy attendees—then select one roommate for their remaining three years.

Abigail’s classes are challenging. This semester she is enrolled in cyber science, English 2, government, differential equations, and chemistry. “I feel that my education in Collier County prepared me for [these],” Abigail says. She also notes the Naval Academy is not like colleges her friends attend. This has been particularly true since Operation Epic Fury and the days leading up to it. “We read and follow the news,” she says. “This is very serious. This is what we train for. It’s not a case study; it’s good to be reminded of that.” 

While Abigail is not competing in intercollegiate sports and doesn’t plan to, she is enjoying club basketball and lacrosse. “I miss the games,” says the former captain of the basketball and swimming teams at Aubrey Rogers High School, “but it would be very demanding [to play intercollegiate sports] with all the military obligations.” As part of her military training, Abigail takes part in low-crawling workouts, bear-crawling with weights, and weighted runs. She also ran her first half-marathon.

Socializing has evolved for Abigail, who says “You learn to have a different type of social life.” She spends Friday nights on campus with male and female friends, watching movies, playing games, and cooking. Once a month (on a weekend), she gets to travel with friends to Washington, D.C., for dinner—and to get her nails done. Since she must always wear her uniform, Abigail reports she frequently hears words of appreciation, such as “Thank you for your service.” Serving and being part of a special team is particularly gratifying to Abigail, who reports attending the Army-Navy game at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, was “great.”

Students at the Naval Academy have the option of having local sponsors in Annapolis. Abigail considers herself fortunate to receive care and hospitality from a family she knew from Naples. At their place, she receives home-cooked meals, gets her laundry done, and relaxes a bit. “That has been a big part of my adjustment,” she notes.

Abigail finds the positive in just about every situation. On having to always wear one of five uniforms, she says, “It isn’t too bad—I don’t have to think about what to wear.”

One of her brothers, Benjamin, a junior at Aubrey Rogers who—like his sister—is an excellent student and athlete, has been accepted to attend the Naval Academy’s summer seminar this year. Abigail hopes her brother will follow in her footsteps.

Looking ahead, she plans to major in operations research, with an emphasis in analytics. Post graduation, she is interested in life as a surface warfare officer, which would allow her to work on a destroyer, cruiser, or amphibious assault ship and enable her to be on a ship immediately following graduation. “I want to travel, meet people, and see the world,” she says.

Seeing the world might be something she does for a long time. “I’m making great friendships,” Abigail says. “If it’s like that but on a bigger scale, I could see myself being in the navy for around 20 years.”

Story Credits:

Shot on location at Aubrey Rogers High School, Naples

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