MARIETTA - For perhaps the first time in Marietta High School's history, four members of the graduating class have been appointed to the nation's service academies.

All of the seniors competed against candidates nationwide for admission, and each received at least one nomination from a member of Congress, the vice president or president. Each service academy appointment equals a four-year scholarship worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Erik Houston will attend the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. Teresa Elsbree, Jalen Fooster-Barrino, and Cole Donnelly all accepted appointments to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

"I am extremely proud of these students," principal Leigh Colburn said of the four. "They are worthy candidates of the investment."

Houston said it has been a goal of his for as long as he could remember to attend a service academy. Before his senior year he visited both West Point and the Naval Academy in Annapolis during two separate one-week summer camps for future academy candidates, and said he fell in love with West Point.

"It's funny because my main goal was Annapolis, and I saw West Point and I really just can't explain it, I like the feel up there and the history that's behind it," Houston said.

Houston, the son of Chuck and Dawn Houston, began the rigorous application process at the beginning of his senior year, which includes several rounds of interviews with the school, as well as meetings with a Congress member to receive a nomination. By Thanksgiving he received word he had gotten in and got his appointment from both Sens. Johnny Isackson and Saxby Chambliss.

Houston will also be playing football at West Point and signed his letter of intent to play on national signing day in February. He is not sure yet what he will be majoring in, but is looking forward to making life-long friends at the academy and being a part of the fraternity that is West Point.

Teresa Elsbree, 18, who is one of the first female students from Marietta High to be appointed to a service academy, said she decided to apply to the Air Force Academy her sophomore year of high school when she went to an honors camp at the school through the junior ROTC program.

"I met a lot of kids out there that were all interested in going into the military and going into the Air Force Academy. I really liked what I heard about those programs from them," Elsbree said. "I got back home and did my own research and I decided that was something I really wanted to do."

Elsbree said the tradition of military service in her family also inspired her decision. Both of her grandfathers were in the military, and her older brother is going into the Navy in December, while her sister is starting Naval Officer training in a few weeks, her parents James and Ruth Elsbree, said.

She got her appointment at the end of March from Rep. Phil Gingrey. While Elsbree said she is a bit nervous about basic training in the first few weeks, she is excited to major in behavioral sciences. She's not sure what field of the military her major will take her to, but she is ready for a chance to service in a leadership role.

"I'm really looking forward to the whole experience. I'm nervous about some of it, but I just can't wait," Elsbree said.

Although the Air Force Academy wasn't on Jalen Fooster-Barrino's mind until fairly recently, he is thrilled for the opportunity to attend such a prestigious school.

One of the main draws for the senior track and field athlete was the fact that the coach at the Air Force Academy began recruiting him for the throwing team in the beginning of his senior year. Fooster-Barrino, 17, son of Teisha Fooster, said he is looking forward to competing in several events at the collegiate level, including the shot put, discus, hammer throw, javelin and weight throw. He hopes to qualify for the academy's world class athlete program, which allows athletes to compete in national and international events with the ultimate goal of qualifying for the U.S. Olympic team.

"There were just a lot of opportunities that were presented to me that I didn't know about," Fooster-Barrino said of the recruiting process. "You're almost guaranteed a job out of the Air Force Academy, and of course, the world class athlete program."

Fooster-Barrino received his appointment in March by Rep. Phil Gingrey. He will be majoring in civil or mechanical engineering.

Cole Donnelly, whose father is a Naval aviator, said he always knew the military was the place for him. In addition to his Air Force Academy appointment, he was also offered a spot at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis.

"I grew up pretty much on base and saw him (his father) flying pretty much every weekend and I got to fly with him a couple times, so it just grew into something I wanted to do," Donnelly said. "So it's my goal to go to the Air Force Academy and go to pilot training after that."

Donnelly, son of Mark and Tess Donnelly, set his sights on the Air Force Academy late into his freshman year. He began applying in February of his junior year, contacting almost every Congress member he could as well as the President and Vice President, he joked, and he received nominations from President Barack Obama, as well as Rep. Phil Gingrey.

He plans to major in geospatial science, which he said is the study of geography and satellites. Donnelly said he is also looking forward to joining several clubs at the academy, including a skydiving team and a parachuting program.

"It's just kind of a nice sense of accomplishment," Donnelly said. "I've been working pretty hard for the past three and a half, four years now, so it's kind of nice to be like, I'm actually going somewhere that I want to go. It's kind of like a big accomplishment."

Principal Colburn said it has been a joy to witness the rise of these students.

"These seniors are academically focused and high achieving, while also having a broad field of interests," she said. "I am proud of the partnership Marietta High School has had with each of these families. I know these students are going to be wonderful representatives of our city and our school system."