Utah shop teacher graduates top of class in Utah Air National Guard

WEST JORDAN — A Kaysville Jr. High School shop teacher recently graduated from Air Force Basic Military Training at the top of his class, showing his own students it's never too late to accomplish their goals.

Brian Clancy, 33, of West Jordan, has taught career-education classes for seven years. Teaching his students how to build things has been at the forefront of his mind and inspiring them to create the life they've always wanted.

"Since I can remember, I've always wanted to be in the military," Clancy said. "My dad is a veteran and he fought with the 82nd Airborne Division and was a paratrooper medic. He fought in the Grenada conflict and earned a bronze medal, so we took a lot of pride in that."

Clancy's dreams of being in the military were all but dashed when the choice of disclosing information on his application became a matter of integrity. As a child, he was told that he had a pervasive developmental disorder, or PPD, which is on the autism spectrum. PPD can affect communication, social interaction and include repetitive behaviors.

"The first time I tried to join (the military) was actually after I graduated from BYU," Clancy recalled. "I tried to join the Marines and I was turned down after an initial interview when I disclosed the disability."

Clancy knew he'd reach his military goal if he didn't disclose his disability, but it was important for him to tell the truth. He tried once more with the Navy, with the same result.

As time went by, Clancy put his dream on the back burner and pushed forward with a career in education. His first teaching assignment was at Utah Military Academy, a junior ROTC-based school, where he was immersed in military culture and future cadets.

"At Utah Military Academy, there's a ton of patriotism, and tons of people interested in joining the military," he said. "I was in my mid-to-late 20s at this point, so the question was going around among my students, asking me if I'd ever thought of joining (the military). I told them my background, and they told me to try to join the Army National Guard."

With the fire inside him lit again, he worked with a recruiter who said he could get a waiver. Not long into the process, however, he broke his foot and ended up needing surgery and a metal plate inserted. That plate automatically medically disqualified him.

"So at this point, I thought for sure God was telling me I shouldn't join the military," Clancy said. "I mean, come on, it's been three times by three different branches — a freak accident happened and I'm now medically disqualified, right? Those few years were some hard years. Breaking my foot happened just as COVID was starting, and just as everything was hitting the sand. My teaching job got a whole lot harder because I was balancing doing distance learning modules with teaching kids in person."

During that time, Clancy recalled putting on nearly 80 pounds, which was extremely challenging for someone who had been physically active his whole life. Little did he know that the silver lining would come in the shedding of some — silver lining.

"I had an allergic reaction to the metal that was in my foot, so they decided to remove the plates from my foot," he said. "This meant that I was technically no longer medically disqualified. So I started working on losing weight. I started working on my health so that I could go back to the Army National Guard recruiters to tell them that I wanted to try again. The recruiters were very blunt with me, and they told me that I had maybe a 10% chance of getting in."

'So you're telling me there's a chance'

Undeterred by the slim prospect of getting in, Clancy focused on the fact that there was still a chance.

"You know the scene in 'Dumb and Dumber' where the girl says to the guy that 'you have a very small chance of being able to be with me' and he's like, 'but I still have a chance, right?' That was me and my relationship with the military at this point. He was saying I had a 10% chance of getting in, and I'm basically the desperate guy that's like, 'I still have a chance.'"

Once again, the Army didn't work out, and military dreams were put on hold — likely forever. Clancy started working on his master's degree, and as luck would have it, he was working on a project with three veterans from the Air Force, which wasn't a branch of military he had tried yet.

He eventually connected with a Utah Air National Guard recruiter who asked all the right questions, including one very important one.

"I explained to the recruiter why I was disqualified from the other positions, and he asked me a question that changed the trajectory of everything. He said, 'Do you have documentation of that disability?'" Clancy recalled. "I told him yes because I had old IEP (Individualized Education Plan) paperwork from school that said I had the disability, but I didn't have an actual diagnosis from a doctor."

Because Clancy didn't have an actual diagnosis from a doctor, the condition he believed he had since he was a child was considered hearsay. The argument was made that there was no official diagnosis.

"The plates were removed from my foot. I was no longer medically disqualified. I lost the 80 pounds that I gained. Now I was in a position to be able to make it happen."

Not only did he make it happen, but on April 30, at the end of his Air Force Basic Military Training in San Antonio, Texas, Clancy was awarded top graduate out of over 700 recruits.

Air National Guard recruiter Centennial Alofipo, who worked with him, said that she was "blown away" when she learned of the success her recruit had achieved.

"Brian had already spent much of his career as an educator, shaping young minds, and despite being older than many recruits — at 33 years old, when most people assume physical performance declines after 30 — he outperformed younger airmen," Alofipo said. "Brian's unwavering curiosity and commitment to excellence set him apart throughout the process. He never let others' opinions deter him from his goals. He's a kind, humble, and truly caring individual — both in and out of uniform.

"I'm honored to have been part of his story," she continued. "Brian made this happen because he never gave up. Not only did the Utah Air National Guard gain an outstanding Airman, but I also gained a lifelong friend and a connection to his beautiful, supportive family."

Clancy has several more months left in his training to become an aerospace ground equipment specialist. He will return home in December to his wife and two children. He plans to continue teaching and is excited to use much of his training in his curriculum.

"I'm excited to bring all this new knowledge that I have to my students," he said. "In my shop, I teach kids how to 3D-print, do electrical, and how to work with wood. Imagine if I could bring mechanical into that or hydraulics into that. These are amazing skills that will help them be able to contribute to society. I feel a great sense of purpose doing that."

As for receiving any accolades for his performance at Basic Training, Clancy was quick to defer his success to an unwavering belief in God.

"I was never aspiring to bet anything; I just want to do my best and the good Lord helped the rest fall in the place," he said.

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