‘She has such a strong moral code’; Set to attend U.S. Air Force Academy, Elise Daugherty earned military nominations from congressmen Sheehy, Zinke
By Jen Clancey STAFF WRITER
As the sky darkened on a September 2025 evening, Elise Daugherty ran the mile to end a physical test required for her application to U.S. military academies. Daugherty, a Lone Peak High School senior, had already completed the other physical requirements, which were recorded by Big Sky School District Athletic Director John Hannahs.
“It was kind of poetic,” Hannahs said, recalling that evening when he stood and held a stopwatch on the Lone Peak track and timed Daugherty’s mile, where, in the last 400 meters, she seemed to unlock an extra gear to finish strong. But Daugherty’s work hadn’t started or ended there. Attending a U.S. military academy had been her goal since eighth grade and she still needed to complete rounds of interviews, essays and nominations.
As a local student raised in Big Sky, she was finally rewarded for her hard work when she was appointed to the U.S. Air Force Academy in February 2026. Acceptance into U.S. military academies like the Air Force, or U.S. Naval Academy and U.S. Military Academy at West Point, is highly competitive and requires a nomination from a member of Congress. Daugherty received a principal nomination from U.S. Senator Tim Sheehy in December, and also received an alternate nomination to the U.S. Naval Academy from Rep. Ryan Zinke.
“I kind of kept it on the down low until [Sheehy’s office] did an official press release about it, and it didn’t feel real. It felt like a fever dream, truly,” Daugherty said. “Because I was just like there’s no way this is happening, and I just refuse to believe it sometimes, that all my work has paid off.”
Daugherty is the first female student from the Big Sky School District to attend a military academy, LPHS Principal Marlo Mitchem told EBS, and is among a small number of BSSD students admitted to military academies—the last LPHS student to enroll in a military academy was Beckett Johnson in 2024, the first to attend West Point.
Mitchem remembers an eighth grade Daugherty beginning to shape her future.
“I do remember that in middle school she did have this really big shift. And you can tell she was thinking about her future and she was planning and working towards it,” Mitchem said. That timeline aligns with Daugherty’s memory—she’d always planned on joining the military after graduating from high school, inspired by stories her father told her about his eight years of service in the U.S. Air Force, and learned about military academies late in middle school.
Four years later, Mitchem was “elated” when she heard that Daugherty would attend the academy.
“She has such a strong moral code,” she said. “It’s who you want in leadership positions in our U.S. military, and that made me so excited for her. She’s going to be an incredible leader.”
Daugherty’s personal journey hasn’t been without trials, though. A knee injury to her ACL and meniscus in her sophomore year left her in physical pain for months, and challenged her mindset as she took time away from sports to recover. But she kept a positive mindset, and attributes this experience to boosting her mental strength.
She also shared that there were times people questioned her ability to qualify and attend a military academy. As a young woman, she noticed that sometimes perceptions of her abilities were shaped by gender and appearance.
“But I think it could go two ways,” Daugherty said. “You can either become lesser than, because of other people’s opinions that are being forced on you because they hold certain positions of power. [Or it] can also stir up a fire inside of you … and that’s what happened to me.”
She hopes local young girls can feel inspired.
“I don’t want other little girls to feel the way I felt,” Daugherty said. Special operations, or even traveling to another country alone, seemed limited to the male experience, she felt, but she saw these expectations as a challenge, not a limitation.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had a lot of support [in the process], but just growing up in certain environments, I think there needs to be a change, and if you expect other people to do it, it’s not going to happen,” Daugherty said.
That support she speaks of came from her family, friends and community members at school and in Big Sky. Her parents encouraged her throughout the application process.
“They understand that this is my dream and they want me to be happy,” Daugherty said. “So I don’t feel pressure to do it. I feel more like I have support.”
Friends and teachers offered advice and a listening ear when Daugherty contemplated how she could contribute to leadership in the military. She thanked teachers and mentors, including Patty Hamblin, John Hannahs and Tony Coppola, for supporting her.
“It was just so amazing because they wanna see me succeed. They don’t want to hold me back and hold me down. It’s been really cool ’cause I’ve come to appreciate all the work that they’ve given me,” Daugherty said. “I just appreciate all the hard things that they put me through now and all the hard work that they’ve done to get me here.”
Outside of classes, Daugherty is involved in Big Brothers Big Sisters, Rotary Interact Club, is the president of the yearbook club and has participated in the Girls State model governance competition. She’s also taken a dive into photographing lichen on rocks, which won her a regional award in 2024. At BASE, she trains in mixed martial arts.
Hannahs believes this well-roundedness will lend itself well to leadership.
“I think the first thing that’s so great about Elise is just how kind and respectful she is to everyone she meets … I think she’s very well equipped to be a valuable member of the military,” Hannahs said.
Daugherty will begin her Air Force Academy education in June in Colorado Springs. She has talked with female cadets at the academy—the incoming class in 2025 was 76.4% male and 23.6% female—who have warned her of certain challenges, but assured her that she can overcome them. Daugherty will have several years practicing the can-do mindset before she even leaves Montana.
“I’ve been told that if you wanna do it, you can do it,” Daugherty said. “It’s gonna be really tough, but you can do it.”
