WHAT IS THE ARKANSAS OUTSTANDING MILITARY SCHOLAR AWARD?
The Arkansas Outstanding Military Scholar Award (OMSA) is presented by the Arkansas Council for Military Children (the Council) annually during the spring semester to a scholar enrolled in grade 12 in an Arkansas school and who is the child of a current or former member of the uniformed services.  The Council will select four Finalists, one of whom will be selected as the State Winner.

HOW DOES A SCHOLAR ENTER COMPETITION FOR THE AWARD?
The scholar (the Nominee) must be nominated by one of the following Nominating Officials of the school or district in which the Nominee is enrolled at the time of the nomination: district superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, assistant principal, or school guidance counselor. Each high school (public, charter, and private) is limited to a single Nominee during any academic year. The nominee’s school must have previously been designated as a Purple Star School by the Arkansas Council for Military Children.

WHAT DO THE FINALISTS AND WINNER RECEIVE?
Each Finalist will receive

• A certificate from the Arkansas Council for Military Children
  

The State Winner will receive

• A plaque from the Arkansas Council for Military Children
• A laptop computer (provided by Forge Institute)
  

WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE AWARD?
To be eligible for this award, the Nominee must:

1. Be the child, stepchild, or legal ward of a current or former member of the active or reserve components of the uniformed services of the United States. See the Definitions section at the end of this packet for more information on qualifying uniformed service.
2. Be a scholar enrolled in grade 12 in an Arkansas Purple Star School, including public schools, open-enrollment charter schools (including Arkansas Virtual Academy and Arkansas Connections Academy), private or parochial schools at the time the nomination is made. Home school scholars are ineligible unless enrolled in an academic or extracurricular activity in an Arkansas school district at the time the nomination is   made.
   to a single nominee.
3. Have no transcript grades of D or F.
4. Have never been suspended or expelled from school, including in-school suspension and suspensions or expulsions from other schools, including schools in other states.
   

WHEN WILL NOMINATIONS BE ACCEPTED?
The Council accepts nominations January 1 through January 31 each year.

WHAT DOES THE NOMINATION PACKET INCLUDE?
The nomination is made online and must include the following documents:

1. The Arkansas Outstanding Military Scholar Nomination Form signed by an approved Nominating Official (superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, assistant principal, or school guidance counselor). A digital signature is acceptable. The nomination form includes a statement of assurance that the Nominee’s transcript includes no grade of D or F and that the Nominee has never been suspended or expelled.
2. OMSA Form 1 (Fillable) Academic Achievement This form is used to summarize the Nominee’s academic record and any academic awards received. All five pages of the form must be submitted in pdf format as an attachment to the nomination form. 
3. AOMS Form 2 (Extracurricular Participation and Leadership) This form summarizes the Nominee’s participation in extracurricular activities, including leadership positions held and awards received. More information on extracurricular activities can be found in the Definitions section. 
4. AOMS Form 3 (Community Service Learning Record) This form is used to document  any community service learning the Nominee has performed. The Nominating Official must collect forms from the supervisor of the community service learning activities in which the Nominee has been involved. The Nominating Official may use as many forms as necessary. More information on community service learning is available in the Definitions section.
5. Essay by the Nominee. Parameters for the essay are found in the Definitions section.  The essay evaluation rubric is available for download.
6. Three letters of support. One letter of support is required. Up to three may be submitted.  Parameters for the letters of support are found in the Definitions section.
7. Examples of correctly completed OMSA Forms 1, 2, and 3 are included at the end of this document.
   

HOW ARE NOMINATIONS SUBMITTED?
Nominations are made online only. All supporting documents (letters of support, service records, etc.) must be submitted in .pdf format as attachments to the nomination form at the time the nomination form is submitted. Documents submitted separately will not be accepted.

WHAT ARE THE SELECTION TIMELINE AND PROCESS?

While the Council will strive to adhere to this timeline, the Council reserves the right to change the timeline as circumstances may require.

DEFINITIONS

QUALIFYING PARENTAL MILITARY SERVICE

1. The parent of the nominee must be or have been a member of any of the following:
   a. Army (including Army Reserve and Army National Guard)
   b. Navy (including Navy Reserve)
   c. Marine Corps (including Marine Corps Reserve)
   d. Air Force (including Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard)
   e. Coast Guard (including Coast Guard Reserve)
   f. Space Force (including Space Force Reserve)
   g. Public Health Service
   h. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
   
2. The parent need not be in the service at the time the nomination is made. Service at any time in the past qualifies. Parents who are retired from the uniformed services, including medically retired, and parents who died on active duty or as a result of wounds received in action, are included.  The parent’s discharge status is immaterial.
3. Service as a dual status military technician is considered qualifying uniformed service.
4. Service solely as a civilian employee of any of the uniformed services is not considered qualifying uniformed service.
5. Service solely in a state military organization or in any militia organization other than the National Guard is not considered qualifying uniformed service. An example of a state military organization other than the National Guard is the Texas State Guard.
6. Parental status includes noncustodial parents, adoptive parents, stepparents, and legal guardians.
7. The Nominating Official may be required to provide evidence of the parent’s uniformed service.
   

EXTRACURRICULAR PARTICIPATION

1. The Nominee must have participated in at least one extracurricular activity for one complete season as established by the Arkansas Activities Association during an academic year (defined as July 1 through June 30). If the extracurricular activity does not have a season, then the Nominee must have participated in the activity for two complete semesters.
2. The activity must be sponsored by a school, civic organization, or religious organization. Activities governed by the Arkansas Activities Association meet OMSA application requirements.
3. Activities sponsored by political organizations or by organizations that promote racial, ethnic, or gender bias do not meet OMSA application requirements.  The Council reserves the right to determine which organizations meet OMSA application requirements.
4. The Nominating Official must provide evidence of the Nominee’s participation using OMSA Form 2.
   

COMMUNITY SERVICE LEARNING

1. The Nominee must perform a minimum of 80 hours of community service learning. A maximum of 120 hours may be counted toward the award.
2. The service must have been performed during the Nominee’s 9th through 12th  grade years.  The service must directly benefit one or more organizations from DESE’s Community Service Learning Partner Sites list.
3. The Nominating Official must document the community service learning hours using OMSA Form 3. Upon request by the Council, the Nominee may be required to produce verification of the community service learning from the Community Service Learning Partner organization.
4. The following will not be counted for the Nominee’s community service learning hours:
   a. Court mandated community service.
   b. Any service for which a scholar benefited financially or materially.
   c. Family related activities or service to family members (e.g., babysitting, completing assigned chores, etc.)
   

ESSAY BY THE NOMINEE

1. The essay must be on one of the following themes:
   a. How the parent/guardian’s military service has influenced the Nominee’s perspective on public service.
   b. How the parent/guardian’s military service has enriched the life of the Nominee with regard to his/her civilian peers.
   c. How the uniformed parent/guardian’s absence for military service has influenced or developed the Nominee’s leadership abilities.
2. The essay must be a minimum of 1,000 words and a maximum of 2,000 words, written in 12-point Times New Roman font with one-inch margins, double spaced, submitted in pdf format.
3. The essay should not include acronyms. The essay may refer to military rank but should not refer to military pay grade.  Abbreviations for military rank may be used.
4. The Nominating Official must submit a statement of assurance that the essay is the nominee’s own work. The statement of assurance is included as a question in the online nomination form.
   

LETTERS OF SUPPORT

1. One letter of support is required. The nomination packet may include up to three letters of support. Letters of support written by the following individuals do not meet OMSA application requirements:
   a. The Nominating Official.
   b. Members of the Nominee’s immediate family.
   c. Leaders of religious organizations (unless serving in the role of classroom teacher, school administrator, or supervisor of the Nominee’s community service learning activity).
   d. Any person holding an elected office unless that person supervised the scholar’s community service learning project.
2. Letters may be typed or legibly handwritten and may not exceed two pages in length. Minimum font size for typewritten letters is 12 points.
3. Letters must be signed by hand by the author and attached to the nomination form in pdf format. Digitally signed letters of support or letters bearing a type-written signature do not meet OMSA application requirements.
4. Each letter must include a contact phone number or e-mail address for the author.
   To download this document with samples of OMSA Forms 1 and 2, click here.