Despite the pitch-black sky, discouraging 5:45 a.m. flashing on nearby clocks and the 35-pound backpacks tugging on their shoulders, each cadet proudly and without hesitation went to attention as soon as the flag was raised.
MSU’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, or ROTC, meets three times a week to practice road marches, a three-mile march around campus.
Sept. 21 was the first time many of the newest recruits would perform a road march. Mastering this skill is crucial to one’s success in the program and in the military as well.
These morning training sessions begin inside Demonstration Hall, where cadets meet to take attendance, take out their fake weapons, get into the correct order and make it outside in time for the raising of the flag.
Along with preparing them for future road marches, these training sessions also ready them for their physical fitness tests.
These tests include testing how many pushups one can do in two minutes, how many sit-ups one can do in two minutes and a two-mile run. In order to maintain scholarships and earn their stipend, cadets are required to pass this test.
ROTC is the largest commissioning source of the United States Army’s officers, giving students the opportunity to take part in an academically challenging, developmental program, Capt. Matthew Kabat, assistant operations officer for the battalion, said.
Though Kabat didn’t take part in the Army ROTC program when he was younger, he is grateful for the opportunity to train those involved at MSU.
Taking part in the Army ROTC program provides cadets with numerous benefits, along with the opportunity to live as close to a normal college lifestyle as possible, Kabat said.
Those involved in the program receive benefits such as scholarships, a stipend system where they’re paid monthly, a free gym pass and much more, along with being able to be a part of other activities on campus, such as sororities, fraternities and college sports.
“What you’re going to find is most people in this battalion are very, very highly motivated,” political science senior and Cadet Michael Bouchard said. “They’re going to take on probably as much as their plate could possibly allow them and they manage it. They really learn how to time manage and be organized. That’s definitely one of the biggest things I’ve learned here.”
After dreaming of being in the military his entire life, Bouchard said he has found that this program has provided him with everything he hoped it would.
This is his fourth year in the program and he is currently their public affairs officer and acts as a senior staff member.
As soon as Bouchard realized he wanted to go into the military when he was younger, he recalls that he was hardly able to talk about anything else.
“The same goes for all of my siblings,” Bouchard said. “Once we commit to something, that’s all we talk about. That’s how it was for me with the military and same with my younger brother, who’s about to join.”
For post-graduation plans, Bouchard hopes to go into infantry and eventually go to law school.
While seniors like Bouchard have grown comfortable with the program, freshmen students just beginning admitted to being overwhelmed.
Physics freshman Cadet Andrew Simon said he felt “really small.”
“You’re a freshman and they expect you to do a little messing up because you’re new to the program,” Simon said. “It’s a challenge, but it’s a really good challenge.”
Simon’s hopes of joining the Army began in kindergarten, when his friend’s dad came to show and tell, leaving him both inspired and impressed. His mom brought up the option of Army ROTC when he was in fifth grade and he joined the program this year.
Army ROTC’s upcoming events include a ruck march, participating in the homecoming parade and Alex’s Great State Race, a 64-mile race that beings at 3:30 a.m. in Ann Arbor, Mich. and ends at Demonstration Hall near the Spartan Statue.
