Cisneros Earns Military Excellence Award at Recruit Training Command

GREAT LAKES (NNS) – Fireman Andrew Cisneros graduated as the top Sailor from Recruit Training Command (RTC) Great Lakes, earning the Military Excellence Award (MEA) July 30, 2026.

Cisneros, 24, of Fullerton, California, said he never pictured himself earning the award, and that the surprise reshaped how he thinks about what it takes to be the best.

"I learned what the MEA was in my first week at RTC, but I never pictured myself earning it," Cisneros said. "I got good scores on my tests and assessments, but I was never perfect, and I made a lot of mistakes along the way. What I realized is that you don't have to be perfect. You just have to learn from your mistakes and show up and give your best every day. To earn this, you don't have to be better than everyone else. You just have to be better than who you were yesterday."

The Military Excellence Award is presented to the recruit who best demonstrates enthusiasm, devotion to duty, military bearing and teamwork throughout training. As part of the recognition, recipients receive a flag letter of commendation.

The path that brought Cisneros to that realization started from a standstill. After Fullerton Union High School, where he completed the full International Baccalaureate program, he tried college at Norco but never settled on a major or found the motivation to finish. He was waiting tables and tending bar at a restaurant, aware that time was passing and a career wasn't taking shape.

The idea arrived on vacation.

"I was on a family vacation in Hawaii, and I started thinking about enlisting, since there's a naval base on the island," Cisneros said. "Serving tables isn’t what I wanted to be doing, and I figured I could do more by serving my country."

When he got home, his recruiter had him take a practice aptitude test. The results opened every door the Navy had.

"I qualified for every rate in the Navy," he said. "My recruiter asked if I was interested in the Nuclear Propulsion Field, and I had no idea what that even was. I never would have considered becoming a nuclear engineer, but I decided to go big and challenge myself."

That decision to step into the unfamiliar previewed the challenge that would define his time at RTC. Cisneros had always seen himself as a follower, never a leader. When the role of recruit chief petty officer opened in his division, he made himself reach for it.

"I'd never fulfilled a leadership role. I always considered myself a team player or a follower," Cisneros said. "When I got the position, I felt uncomfortable being the center of attention. I had no confidence in myself and I was scared to make mistakes. What I learned is that the best way to get others to follow is to lead by example. I had to be okay with making mistakes, taking criticism and finding the courage to ask for help."

The example he tried to follow came from his second RDC, Petty Officer 1st Class Tiawanda Bennett.

"On our first day, she introduced herself and said, 'As your RDC, I will give you all 110 percent. All I ask is that you give 110 percent as well,'" Cisneros said. "Day in and day out, she was there teaching us how to become proper Sailors. Even when she was dealing with personal issues, she still showed up to train us and gave her all. Her commitment to her duty never wavered."

The other example he relied on during training had been in front of him his whole life. Cisneros said his mother, the hardest-working person he knows, set the standard he tried to carry through boot camp.

"She takes care of her family and the house, works a full-time job, and rarely takes time for herself, but I never hear her complain," he said. "Throughout boot camp she sent me letters to catch me up on the family, and whenever I felt down or overwhelmed, she always seemed to have a quote written down to lift my spirits. I tried to reflect the attributes of both of these women."

For anyone back home weighing something they aren't sure they can finish, Cisneros offered the perspective he earned the hard way.

"Navy boot camp is not easy. It's meant to be hard," he said. "There will be days when you have doubts or you just want to go home. But keep pushing and see it through. For me, this has been the most rewarding test of my life. I've learned so much about myself and what I'm capable of in nine weeks."

Following graduation, Cisneros will report to Naval Nuclear Power Training Command in Goose Creek, South Carolina, to begin training in the Navy's nuclear propulsion program.

Training at RTC is approximately nine weeks long, and all enlistees in the U.S. Navy begin their careers at the command. More than 40,000 recruits train annually at the Navy's only boot camp.