(Left Center) U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Michael Ford,

(Left Center) U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Michael Ford, commanding officer of Marine Corps Recruiting Station Phoenix, commends Mackenzie R. Bartkus, a senior at Desert Mountain High School, on being a 2013 recipient of the highly selective $150,000 Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) scholarship, during a recorded ceremony at the school in Phoenix, Jan. 30, 2013. Bartkus was selected among more than 130 applicants from the southwestern United States, based on his commitment to the classroom, his community and to physical fitness. "Mackenzie is what the NROTC scholarship program is about, rewarding the best and the brightest for their commitment to excellence," said Ford. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Tyler J. Bolken)