New ROTC recruitment attempts to change image
Utah State University’s division of the Army ROTC is looking to both inform students about the program and recruit new members.
“We’ve got a secret here in the ROTC, and we want to let that secret out,” Sgt. First Class LawRell Cook, recruitment operations officer at USU, said.
Cook said several cadets will be giving short presentations throughout campus in coming weeks to display what opportunities are available in the ROTC. As students walk through various building on campus, he said, they will see the seven core Army values displayed with the theme of the current recruitment project, “Make a Difference.”
“This theme has a two-fold meaning,” Cook said. “The ROTC can make a difference in the lives of its members and the members can, in turn, make a difference in their own lives.”
Besides these presentations, Cook said an open-house for those interested in learning more about the program will be held Feb. 23, 24 and March 2 and 3 from 4 to 7 p.m. in the Military Science Building.
“We’re hoping to have local National Guard and reserve units with displays at the open houses,” he said. “We are also lining up presenters like veterans of Iraqi Freedom to share their experiences in a time of conflict.”
While no particular age group or type of person is specifically recruited, Cook said the Army ROTC is looking for motivated, well-rounded individuals.
“The ROTC is looking to recruit scholars, athletes and leaders,” he said. “As athletes, we are looking for people who participate in intramural athletics, as well as club and team sports. We consider scholars to be those students who have high GPA and ACT scores and leaders are individuals who are typically Eagle scouts, officers in organizations and entrepreneurs.”
He said these types of students tend to do better in officer training, and produce better officers in the long run.
Cook said the programs and presentations the ROTC is instituting are as much about building a better understanding of the training as recruiting new members.
“The presentations we are instituting aren’t necessarily a push to expand our program, but to create awareness of what we have to offer in the ROTC,” Cook said.
He said students often have a wrong perception of what the program actually involves. Students might think members of the ROTC plan on going on to the military, he said, but that is definitely not always the case.
“We want to bridge the gap between the preconceived notions USU students have about the ROTC and the reality of the program,” he said.
He said a lot of people see what is going on in the world pertaining to wars and contention, and they think that is what the Army is and does.
“The Army is a different place than what people see,” he said. “This is a place of progression, opportunity and growth.”
Cook said the first two years of the ROTC are purely leadership training, and all people on campus can benefit from the lessons learned. He said the program focuses on teaching leadership skills, like confidence and teamwork, so members can make appropriate and valid decisions in the moment of action.
“In a nutshell, we are training leaders and we use an army strategy approach to get there,” he said.
Cook said he encourages all USU students to take time to learn what lessons and opportunities are available in the Army ROTC.
-lexiek@cc.usu.edu