"BECAUSE OF YOUR SACRIFICE TO DEFEND OUR NATION, I AM SERIOUS ABOUT MY EDUCATION " Academic Patriotism asks every American student to make the above statement of commitment to a member of our United States Armed Forces. Every American student must strive for excellence, in school, out of respect for every American serviceman and woman who gets hurt, hospitalized or killed to defend the rights, and opportunities, for every American student to attend school. And, every American school - that is, every American school: public, private, parochial, charter, independent, alternative, home, combinations thereof, and other; every American school - must be excellent for the very same reason.