VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. –
Jennifer D. Lanz is the new director of the Commonwealth Challenge Youth Academy and started her new position Feb. 1, 2024.
“Jennifer brings a passion for empowering young minds,” said Maj. Gen. James W. Ring, the Adjutant General of Virginia. “Her extensive experience in youth education and development will undoubtably continue the great work our team has been doing for over 30 years.
“Her commitment to fostering growth aligns seamlessly with our mission,” he added. “I am confident that under her guidance, the ChalleNGe Academy will continue to thrive as a beacon for excellence.”
Lanz replaced retired Navy Captain E. Marc Chicoine, who retired Dec. 31, 2023. Chicoine led Commonwealth ChalleNGe since July 2013.
“Director Chicoine has been an integral part of our organization and has demonstrated exceptional leadership during his tenure with the Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy,” Ring said. “His dedication, passion and unwavering commitment to the success and well-being of the youth in this important Virginia National Guard program have left a permanent mark on the Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy. We are truly grateful for his decade of service and the difference he has made within our organization and in the countless lives of the Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy cadets.”
Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy is the Virginia component of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program and is based at the State Military Reservation in Virginia Beach, Virginia. ChalleNGe is a 17-and-a-half-month program that is structured in a military-style environment designed to promote academics, attention to detail, time management, and leadership, while promoting self-esteem, confidence and pride.
The program is open to 16-18 year olds, and the cadets work toward earning their GED, or multiple high school credits through the Credit Recovery program. Cadets either return to high school, enlist in the armed forces, college or trade school, once they’ve completed the five-and-a-half-month residential phase of the program, then enter a one-year mentoring phase.
More than 5,000 Virginia teens have graduated from Commonwealth ChalleNGe since it started in 1994.
Lanz most recently served as assistant principal at Floyd E. Kellam High School in Virginia Beach.
“I applied for the position because it was a perfect culmination of everything I have done in my education and employment career,” Lanz said. “I accepted the position because I whole-heartedly believe in the Youth ChalleNGe mission to provide an opportunity and intervention for 16–18-year-olds needing education and training in a structured environment.”
Lanz said she has referred many students and their families to Commonwealth ChalleNGe over the years and it is a privilege to be part of that training and education of cadets.
But she is not only familiar with the education field. Lanz is also familiar with the military. She was an Army ROTC cadet in the inaugural class of the Virginia Women’s Institute for Leadership at Mary Baldwin College. She served three years in the Virginia Army National Guard while in college and graduated from Mary Baldwin in 1999.
“The Virginia National Guard helped me pay for my education and gave me employment experience,” she said. “I believe in the quasi-military format at ChalleNGE, I believe in the core values as the fundamental curriculum, and I believe in the support for students during the post-residential phase. Being here and seeing the program in action is invigorating.”
Family also plays a big part of ChalleNGe and family is the reason Lanz find herself in her position.
“My mom originally told be about the program because she followed the establishment of ChalleNGe in its creation in 1994,” she explained. “My mom was also the one who shared the job posting with me and encouraged me to apply.”
The Virginia ChalleNGe Academy is divided into three phases- acclimation, residential and post-residential.
The first phase is the Acclimation Period. This period is the first two weeks of the residential phase that consists of physical, leadership, and mental challenges designed to test the candidates’ potential for success in the second phase of the program.
The second phase is a 20-week residential period that consists of academics (credit recovery or GED test preparation), post-residential goal development, physical fitness, counseling (both individual and group), life skills, and team building. This phase supports the development of job skills and self-concept through daily activities and service community.
The third phase is a one-year post-residential phase. This one-year mentorship period is completed in the cadet’s community with the guidance and assistance of a screened, trained, and matched mentor.
The Virginia Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy operates two residential classes per year. The classes begin in March and October. The residential phase consists of academics and structured training that includes daily rigorous physical fitness exercises.
Academic training and instruction is the responsibility of the faculty and is supplemented with various off site field trips. The destinations of these trips vary, depending on the curriculum being taught at a given time. Past field trips have included museums, the Virginia Aquarium, the state capital, Washington D.C., and live theater performances.
The Teach Advise Counsel Officers, also known as cadre, are responsible for the cadets’ execution of the daily routine, physical fitness, personal hygiene, health and welfare, teaching ethical behavior and military science, and working together as a team.
Physical training, drill and ceremonies (marching), and barracks inspections are also integral parts of this training in teaching cooperation, tolerance of others, and teamwork.
As Class 60 prepares to graduate on March 2, Lanz and her staff prepare for Class 61 to arrive as she settles into her position.
“My goals for the program are to increase enrollment, produce additional post-graduate opportunities and facilitate the quasi-military and education structure in order for all students to succeed,” Lanz explained. “Increased enrollment comes from correctly advertising and sharing the benefit of CCYA to those that need this resource. We want all Virginia communities to know about our program and what it offers students who need it.”
Lanz plans to use her connections in the community and maximize “what Hampton Roads has to offer to ensure cadets have investigated and have planned after graduation.”
“We hope to establish a Job Challenge with approval and funding in the future which would give Youth Challenge alumni aged 18-21 an additional 22 weeks of residential educational and career credentialling,” she explained. “The quasi-military structure is the platform that allows CCYA to be organized with structure, rules and physical training; it leaves space for academic success, leadership training and character development to be a successful citizen.”
After only a short time on campus she has already witnessed the dedication and commitment of the ChalleNGe staff.
“I am proud of the work our staff is committed to and every effort they make to support the cadets,” Lanz said. “CCYA will be part of the cadets’ identity as will those that supported their cadet getting here and through this program as well. I look forward to CCYA being part of my life as I can’t imagine making more of a difference in the lives of our youth and our community.”
For more information on the Commonwealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy, please visit
https://www.vachallenge.org/