Reserve Officer Training Corps – Page 23

EWU ROTC to Commission Twelve Cadets as Officers Into the U.S. Army

06/12/2019 by jstafford3

On Friday, June 14, 2019 the Eastern Washington University (EWU) Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) battalion will be commissioning 12 Cadets as officers into the United States Army. The 2019 Commissioning Ceremony will be held inside the second floor auditorium at Showalter Hall on the EWU campus. The guest speaker for the Commissioning Ceremony is retired Brigadier General Neal Sealock, who commissioned through the EWU ROTC program in 1974. He currently serves as the Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army (CASA) for the Eastern Washington region. The ceremony will begin at 10:00 AM and all family, friends, and supporters of the Fighting Eagles battalion is invited to attend and celebrate this significant achievement for our 12 commissioning Cadets.

EWU ROTC Class of 2019 (Back row from left: Kyle Isaacson, Jordan Johnson, Ryan Smith, Scott Hinshaw, Kyle Stanton, Haley Bent, Front row from left: John Howard, Bryce Stanton, Tyler Bergman, and Tyler Roylance; Not pictured: Candace Madriaga & Hayley Primm)

EWU ROTC Cadet Awarded the First Annual Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship

06/12/2019 by jstafford3

This week a Cadet from the Eastern Washington University (EWU) Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) was awarded the first Randy Van Turner ROTC scholarship. The scholarship is in honor of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity’s EWU chapter co-founder First Lieutenant Randy Turner. Randy Turner was a 1968 graduate from the EWU ROTC program who was a recipient of the Silver Star and in 1969 was killed in action during the Vietnam War. This year his fraternity brothers decided to honor his service by establishing an ROTC scholarship program. The scholarship is awarded to EWU ROTC Cadets that demonstrate academic excellence, high physical fitness, leadership, and financial need.

Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity members present Cadet Samantha Knight with a scholarship check that covers one year of tuition.

Through a board process Cadet Samantha Knight was chosen as the first Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship recipient. Cadet Knight is a junior (MS-III) Cadet studying nursing who maintains a near 3.9 GPA. Besides being a Cadet, she is also a combat medic in the U.S. Army Reserve. The scholarship will pay her full tuition next year as she pursues her nursing degree and a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army.

Next month we will announce our second 2019 Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship awardee, but congratulations to Cadet Knight and big thank you to Pi Kappa Alpha for sponsoring this scholarship in support of our outstanding EWU ROTC Cadets.

EWU ROTC Cadet Conducts Nursing Internship at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center

06/07/2019 by jstafford3

This summer seven Cadets from the Eastern Washington University (EWU) Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program were selected for Cadet Command sponsored internships. Our first Cadet has already left and begun their internship. Sarah Mullen a senior (MS-IV) Cadet is spending the next month participating in a nursing internship at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland just outside of Washington, D.C.

Cadet Sarah Mullen

Walter Reed is the nation’s largest and most well known military hospital. It has over 100 clinics that provide specialized care for U.S. military beneficiaries as well as the wounded, ill, and injured from conflicts overseas.

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center via Wikipedia.

Cadet Mullin’s internship is part of the Nurse Summer Training Program (NSTP). This program selects qualified nursing Cadets to intern at Army Medical Department (AMEDD) hospitals around the world. Walter Reed is one of the most prestigious military hospitals for a Cadet to be selected to intern at. During the internship Cadet Mullen will learn all the roles and responsibilities of being a nurse while being under the supervision of an experienced Army Nurse Corps Officer. She will obtain hands on experience in various clinical specialties such as labor and delivery, pediatrics, emergency room, etc.

This is truly a unique internship opportunity that only ROTC Cadets can experience. For anyone interested in becoming an Army Nurse the EWU ROTC program has a long and successful history of commissioning nurses into the Army. You can read more about our program and the pay and benefits of being an Army nurse at the below link:

Throwback Thursday: EWU ROTC’s Cadet Hall Back in 1958

06/06/2019 by jstafford3

Here is an old picture of Cadet Hall back in 1958:

Cadet Hall was constructed by the U.S. Army and first opened in 1956 which makes the building only 2 years old when this picture was taken. Incredibly the building still looks very much the same today.

Due to the Computing and Engineering Building built next to Cadet Hall in 2006, the same perspective is not available to be taken today. Besides the large building next door, Cadet Hall is now also surrounded by large pine trees and landscaping that was not there in 1958.

The stairs in the 1958 picture are also no longer there. However, after all these years Cadet Hall is still where all Military Science classes are taught, the faculty offices, gym, supply room, and our indoor rifle range is located at. Cadet Hall is aging gracefully and still proud to be the home to the EWU ROTC “Fighting Eagles” battalion.

Go ROTC! Go Fighting Eags!

Fighting Eagles Cadets Begin Adopt A Highway Partnership with Washington State Department of Transportation

06/05/2019 by jstafford3

By: Cadet Austin Bristow

On June 1st, 2019, Eastern Washington University (EWU) Reserve Officer Training Program (ROTC) Fighting Eagle Battalion began its participation in the Adopt-A-Highway program sponsored by the Washington State Department of Transportation. The Cadets cleaned a section of Lt. Col. Michael P. Anderson Memorial Highway of debris and litter. The road, also known as Highway 904, is located just north of Cheney in Four Lakes.

The Cadets are ready to conduct their highway cleanup. Back row (left to right: John Drohman, Liam Hewey, Ian House, Hunter Smith, Everett Kuhnel, Riley Williams; front row (left to right): Joseph Jordan, Cheyenne Sweet, Mindy Leen, Samantha Knight, Olivia Roble, Andrew Norby

The Cadets woke up early Saturday morning and donned their hard hats and other safety for the day. Arriving at the designated location with their trash bags, the group spread out over the area to pick up any garbage they saw. Whether it was litter on the road or large piece of wood, EWU ROTC Cadets spent the next couple of hours cleaning up any trash in sight.

Cadets Leen and Williams in the tall grasses looking for litter.

What the Cadets thought would be a long endeavor of cleaning, only took about two hours. With high spirits and beautiful weather, the Cadets were able to collect multiple bags of trash and a stack of wood. Overall, it was a great day of volunteer work in Four Lakes and the Fighting Eagles Cadets look forward to continuing its partnership with the Washington State Department of Transportation to maintain the cleanliness of this busy stretch highway for the local community

Go Fighting Eags!

Cadets Leen and Williams in the tall grasses looking for litter

Fighting Eagles Cadets Experience Army Nursing for the First Time at Madigan Army Medical Center

06/04/2019 by jstafford3

By: Cadet Lucas McCune

During National Nurses Week this past May, three Eastern Washington University (EWU) Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) Cadets visited the Madigan Army Medical Center at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM). The trip to Madigan was sponsored by the nursing team at the 8th ROTC Brigade headquartered at JBLM. Each ROTC battalion in 8th brigade was able to send nursing prospects to participate in the tour. The EWU ROTC battalion sent the most nursing prospects with three Fighting Eagles Cadets, Lucas McCune, Jenna Knight, and Emma LaTour taking advantage of this great opportunity.

From Left: EWU ROTC Cadets Lucas McCune, Jenna Knight, Emma Latour, and Major Myra White the 8th ROTC Brigade nurse.

This tour was the first one the brigade has ever held for Cadets which is why this tour was so special. By the end of the tour, all the Cadets agreed that the trip was invaluable because of the advice they received for their future path in nursing. Not only was the tour beneficial for understanding the duties of army nursing, but a great way to create new bonds between Cadets throughout the brigade.

As the Cadets began to arrive to JBLM on Friday May 10th, they were given time to eat dinner and get to know one another. Shortly after, it was lights out for an early start for the tour of Madigan Hospital the next morning. On the morning of May 11th, the Cadets got ready for the day and were transported to Madigan to begin their tour. Once breakfast had been eaten, the Cadets were given a warm welcome by a few experienced army nurses who would ensure that the duties of Army nurses were understood as well as their specialties.

The tour encompassed a large portion of the hospital. The Cadets began their tour in the Emergency Room which led to the radiology center, intensive care unit, post-anesthesia care unit, as well as patient care rooms and end of life care. Each area of specialty was introduced to the Cadets and explained by a different nurse who worked in that sector. The Cadets were given lots of advice and information on the duties of what each nursing specialty focuses on as well as given time to freely ask questions.

Madigan Army Medical Center via Wikipedia.

As the tour was coming to an end, the cadets were given the opportunity to ask a large variety of Army nurses questions in a panel. Throughout the day, the cadets had been preparing questions to ask to help figure out what path of nursing would suit them best. Here the army nurses offered a variety of experiences and answered questions on the duties of nursing, gave advice through the path of nursing, as well as what to expect on deployments and life as an Army nurse. Cadet Emma LaTour really enjoyed the panel of experienced and new nurses because “we could ask them questions about nursing and at each level they all had something different and helpful to say”.

When the panel ended, the Cadets thanked everyone for taking time out of their day to teach them more about the profession they would be going into. Even though there were many different types of Army nurses, they all shared something in common. It was the “care and compassion that all the nurses and personnel had for their patients,” said Cadet Jenna Knight.

Coming into the tour, most of the cadets knew they wanted to pursue a career in nursing but were not sure what exactly they wanted to do. By the time the tour had come to an end, most of the cadets felt confident in what they wanted to pursue in their near future. On the following morning of May 12th, the Cadets had one last breakfast together and all agreed that this tour was something they hope all future nursing Cadets would get to experience. From the moment the Cadets had arrived to JBLM and left, they had learned so much about their future profession as well as making friendships that would last a lifetime. This tour allowed Cadets to be guided along the daily routines of army nursing as well as begin finding their own path of nursing due to this special opportunity.

For anyone interested in learning more about Army nursing and how to become a nurse through the EWU ROTC program please visit our nursing webpage. The page is filled with information on how to become an Army nurse, scholarship information, and what to expect in the EWU ROTC program.

Go Army Nursing! Go Fighting Eags!