With Fall of 2019 among us, NSU’s Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) have accepted their inaugural class of student cadets.
This program was introduced to the university in the winter semester and plans to bring leadership opportunities to students by offering two to four year programs with an option to add a minor in military science leadership (MSL) to their academic degree.
“ROTC is a leadership program. We want to provide leaders at this university while they are here and after they continue onto the next evolution within their respective lives and careers. We look to enhance the leadership potential that some of the students might not realize they have until they are placed in certain situations [the program provides].That is what we want to do,” said Capt. Martin Johnson, assistant professor of military science for NSU’s Army ROTC program.
All NSU students, graduate and undergraduate, are welcome to participate in this program. According to Johnson, the first two years of the program’s courses do not require a commitment to military service in the future through a commision. Students who choose not to accept a commission into military service and therefore, do not have a contract with the U.S. Army, do not have to move forward with the last two years of the program. These 1000 and 2000-level MSL courses are considered elective courses which can fit within most academic schedules and other academic programs the university provides.
“If an individual elects to participate in ROTC or join military service, awesome. If not, they still have transferable skills they can bring into the civilian sector that can make them highly competitive just by participating in the program,” said Johnson.
For graduate students or undergraduate upperclassmen who are interested in adding this minor or military service into their academic pursuits, these students can attend Basic camp in place of the 1000 and 2000-level elective courses.
According to Johnson, one of the goals of this program is to be woven into the fabric of NSU’s diverse community as these cadets will, based on the opportunities presented to them through the program, become ambassadors for NSU and represent NSU on a larger scale through community service work and other tasks.
“My focus is giving back to my community. It’s not only to see the cadets doing military drills and walking around campus. You will see us at athletic events and see us pushing forward NSU’s message as we transition outside of NSU’s community. Yes, [the public] will see the Army but they will also see the NSU patch and see how [these cadets] interact with others [and their community,” said Johnson.
