Mount Rushmore Battalion prepares ROTC students for summer training
RAPID CITY, S.D. – Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets from Black Hills State University, Chadron State College and South Dakota School of Mines & Technology gathered in Rapid City, South Dakota, March 22-24 for their culminating Field Training Experience (FTX). The multi-day event at West Camp Rapid included rifle marksmanship and land navigation exercises.
As the culminating event for all cadets, the three-day FTX brings together leadership skills taught during the academic year and throughout ROTC, according to Lt. Col. Elvis Coronado, who oversees the Mount Rushmore Battalion, including BHSU, CSC, and Mines.
“The key takeaway of spring FTX for cadets is a military-like experience where they are now able to understand and further visualize how to accomplish military tasks,” Coronado said. “From this they have now developed a confidence in themselves that will allow them success during Cadet Summer Training at Fort Knox, Kentucky.”
FTX started with basic rifle marksmanship to prepare for summer training where cadets must shoot accurately to get qualified on their weapon systems, a requirement which continues in the Armed Services.
Following rifle marksmanship, the cadets moved into land navigation. The students were given military grid points to plot with only a compass, protractor, and map.
The BHSU, CSC, and Mines students then conducted combined operations orders followed by patrol base. Cadets, in teams of three to five, were given a possible enemy situation. They created a plan based on the weapons used and enemy activity. While in patrol base, the students took turns on security watch throughout the night.
Capt. Scot Mullis of CSC said students should look into joining ROTC to set themselves up for success in the future.
“The ROTC scholarships do more than take care of tuition, they also provide the cadet with a living stipend and books which make it easier to focus on classes,” he said.
Cadet Mitchell Parish, a student at CSC, agreed with Mullis.
“I knew about the scholarships and the Army career that would follow ROTC. I was surprised with the amount of opportunities that ROTC provided such as internships, Cultural Understanding and Leadership Program where we can travel abroad and train with our allied nations, and specialized schools,” Parish said.
Cadets from each school who will commission in May include:
· Connor Besse, Littleton, Colo., CSC
· Jared Kovall-Scarlett, Rapid City, BHSU
· David Oerlline, Rapid City, BHSU
· Tristan Walker, San Diego, Calif., SD Mines
For more information on ROTC, contact Mullis at smullis@csc.edu or 308-432-6030.
Category: Campus News, Student Clubs & Organizations