{"id":157030,"date":"2024-07-01T10:47:35","date_gmt":"2024-07-01T16:47:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/?p=157030"},"modified":"2024-07-01T13:04:00","modified_gmt":"2024-07-01T19:04:00","slug":"army-rotc-celebrates-the-commissioning-of-39-cadets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/?p=157030","title":{"rendered":"Army ROTC celebrates the commissioning of 39 cadets"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter\" data-effect=\"slide\"><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper-container\"><ul class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper\"><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157028\" data-id=\"157028\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0999-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0999-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0999-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0999-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0999-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0999-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0999-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157027\" data-id=\"157027\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0678-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0678-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0678-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0678-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0678-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0678-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0678-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157026\" data-id=\"157026\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0675-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0675-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0675-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0675-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0675-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0675-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0675-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157025\" data-id=\"157025\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0667-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0667-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0667-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0667-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0667-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0667-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0667-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157024\" data-id=\"157024\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0646-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0646-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0646-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0646-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0646-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0646-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0646-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157023\" data-id=\"157023\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0540-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0540-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0540-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0540-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0540-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0540-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0540-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157022\" data-id=\"157022\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0539-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0539-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0539-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0539-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0539-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0539-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0539-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157021\" data-id=\"157021\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0032-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0032-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0032-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0032-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0032-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0032-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0032-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-157020\" data-id=\"157020\" src=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0024-1200x800.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0024-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0024-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0024-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0024-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0024-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0024-1400x933.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a aria-label=\"Pause Slideshow\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause\" role=\"button\"><\/a><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The UCCS Army Reserve Officers&#8217; Training Corps (ROTC) recently celebrated the commissioning of 39 cadets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis year, we had an absolutely gifted and special class,\u201d said Lieutenant Colonel Dave Campbell, Professor of Military Science, who helps oversee the Army ROTC program at UCCS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The commissioning ceremony signifies the start of their military career as an officer in the U.S. Army. It shows that they\u2019ve completed their degree \u2013 usually a bachelor\u2019s, although in this class, about 20% are earning their masters \u2013 and have completed at least four semesters of ROTC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While most Army ROTC cadets take the full four years, it\u2019s possible to do it in two with credit for prior service. In this year\u2019s class, about half of the cadets had come from active duty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The cadets have also passed a summer program known as Advanced Camp, a 35-day assessment course that tests their key soldier skills and gives them targeted feedback on their leadership attributes and competencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All of the newly commissioned officers also went through a process called \u2018branching,\u2019 where they compete for the job they\u2019ll get as an officer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere are 18 basic branches that an officer can get,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell explained. \u201cThey do recorded interviews, fill out an online profile with their strengths and weaknesses, and complete a self-assessment, and then they rank the branches they\u2019re most interested in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This year, the cadets were largely interested in military intelligence, which commonly makes the top of the cadets\u2019 lists, and infantry, which usually does not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat\u2019s not normal for our school,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell explained. \u201cWe normally have a lot of medical service, military intelligence, quartermaster, but this year infantry was really popular. So it varies each year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All of these efforts culminate in the commissioning ceremony, where they\u2019ll take their oath of office and get their rank pinned on for the first time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ceremony is particularly meaningful for the cadets, who get to choose who will pin their Second Lieutenant rank on for the first time, as well as select an enlisted soldier, or non-commissioned officer, to render the first salute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat will be the first time ever that they drop their salute first,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell explained. \u201cIn the Army, the senior person drops their salute first, since they are the person being saluted, and for a lieutenant, pretty much everyone who walks by, you\u2019re not going to drop first since you\u2019re the most junior person there is.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After the first salute, the newly commissioned officers also receive a silver dollar, an Army tradition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s a big history behind it,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell said. \u201cBasically, back in earlier times, officers paid non-commissioned officers, and while we don\u2019t do that now, it still pays tribute to that old heritage, the taking care of our non-commissioned officers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After the ceremony, the officers are ready to go active duty and start their careers at military bases across the globe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe typically get a couple that go overseas, and then some that have formed connections in other parts of the country that they want to get back to,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And, for this year\u2019s class, getting where they want to go will be easy. \u201cTheir performance, when compared nationally, was off the charts,\u201d said Lt. Col. Campbell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">89% of the cadets in this class got their first branch pick, which is, in the words of Lt. Col. Campbell, \u201ca credit to them as well, and really, really good.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat\u2019s one of those things we shoot for, because that means most of them will go exactly where they wanted to go,\u201d he said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t be prouder of them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Included in the 274 programs in the United States are some \u201chuge military colleges,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell explained, \u201cwhich might have 300 cadets.\u201d All of the cadets nationwide attend the summer Advanced Camp, where they can be evaluated against their peers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of UCCS\u2019s 39-cadet class, 11 of them \u2013 over 25% \u2013 were rated as the best cadet in their platoon at Advanced Camp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEleven of them were rated as the number one out of 40 in their platoon,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell said with pride. \u201cThose 40 all come from those different schools, and nobody, no other program out of the 274 programs, even if they had 300 cadets to our 39, we had more number one rated cadets than they did. Which is crazy, right? They had 300 chances to get a number one cadet, and we had 39 \u2013 and we had 11. So they\u2019re just a special class.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lt. Col. Campbell went on to describe how, throughout their time at UCCS, this class always raised the bar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;They continually made things better, and they really cared about what they delivered for the classes below them, which is truly commendable\u201d he said. \u201cThey took on every mission I could give them. I pushed them a lot harder, and they did great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Although the scoring methods of Advanced Camp change from year to year, the UCCS Army ROTC program consistently performs well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOut of the 36 schools in our program, we\u2019re always toward the top,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell said. \u201cFor instance, this year, we won Best Medium-Size program out of our school brigade.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For context, the brigade that the UCCS Army ROTC program is in includes all of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEvery Army ROTC program in those states, that\u2019s who we compete against,\u201d Lt. Col. Campbell explained. \u201cAnd we got the best Medium-Size program. So it\u2019s been a legacy of success with our cadets.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>The UCCS Army Reserve Officers&#8217; Training Corps (ROTC) recently celebrated the commissioning of 39 cadets. <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/?p=157030\" title=\"Army ROTC celebrates the commissioning of 39 cadets\">(More)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":157027,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1,429],"tags":[298,51,436,60],"class_list":["post-157030","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all","category-distinctive-programs","tag-department-of-military-science","tag-featured","tag-rotc","tag-student-success"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/DSC_0678.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1mBpJ-EQK","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157030","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=157030"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157030\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":157186,"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157030\/revisions\/157186"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/157027"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=157030"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=157030"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communique.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=157030"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}