Cadets commended

Seven freshmen in the Army ROTC program make Liberty University history

Seven freshmen at Liberty University were awarded with the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) National Scholarship this year, the highest number of awards in Liberty Army ROTC
program history.

The scholarship winners are Cody Clinebell, Kassidy Seaba, Nathaniel Gafford, Steven Wiseman, Joshua Bell, Jordan Harris and Nathaniel Parker.

Train — Army ROTC members worked hard academically and received scholarships. Photo provided

Train — Army ROTC members worked hard academically and received scholarships. Photo provided

Liberty’s Army ROTC Enrollment and Scholarship Officer Jordan Scanlan said this national scholarship is very competitive, and only cadets who excel in areas of academics, fitness and leadership are awarded.

“Last year, we had just over 13,000 applicants across the country, and about 20 percent of them were offered scholarships,” Scanlan said.

Scanlan said the ROTC program at Liberty typically averages about three scholarships per year.

“We focused a considerable amount of time and energy last fall all the way through May of last school year working through several hundred applicants and bringing the best of them to campus for face-to-face interviews and tours,” Scanlan said.

In order to qualify for a national scholarship, candidates must be a U.S. citizen between the ages of 17 and 26, have a high school GPA of at least 2.50, have a high school diploma or equivalent, score a minimum of 920 on the SAT or 19 on the ACT, meet the medical and physical standards, and agree to accept a commission and serve in the U.S. Army on Active Duty or Reserves, according to goarmy.com.

For the application process, Scanlan said applicants have various components that must be completed. Their SAT and ACT scores make up about 25 percent of their overall score. A 95 question survey constitutes another 25 percent of their score, and a Physical Fitness Assessment (PFA) makes up 10 percent.

Next, they must interview with a professor of military science, a component worth 20 percent. Lastly, the applicants fill out a form, which asks various questions about their involvement in activities such as boys or girls state, leading varsity sports teams, or leading in their churches. This final section is the remaining 20 percent of their overall score.

Scanlan said the winners are not chosen by meeting the baseline requirements alone. The criteria they must meet include scholar, athletic and leadership aspects, which are all equally important.

Seaba came to Liberty and initially decided against joining the ROTC program. However, things changed when she heard about the scholarship.

“Over the summer, my dad found out about this scholarship, The Minute Man Scholarship, and told me about it,” Seaba said. “As soon as I heard about the scholarship, I knew I wanted to do it. For me, the scholarship gave me ROTC, and ROTC is really like a family. It’s really been the best part of coming to college so far.”

According to Scanlan, Seaba is the first cadet from Liberty to win one of few Minute Man Scholarships offered across the country.

These scholarships have impacted each cadet differently. Harris said after visiting Liberty one time, she was hooked after realizing it was the largest Christian university in the world and one of the few Christian colleges offering an ROTC program.

Gafford said he has always wanted to serve in the Army and attend Liberty after visiting several times. Although he originally received the scholarship for a different school, he was able to transfer it to Liberty.

“This scholarship has positively impacted my self-confidence, drive for excellence, and ambitions for the future,” Gafford said. “I now have a head start on my Army career even before graduation.”

Although Scanlan is responsible for many legal elements and marketing for the ROTC program, he said he spends the majority of his time counseling and advising not only cadets but also students outside of the program seeking more information. To him, this is the most rewarding aspect of his job.

“This is very rewarding in that I’m putting 18-, 19-, 20-, 21-year-old folks who have no clue what they want to do in life onto a path,” Scanlan said. “I don’t let (the students) leave here without having a game plan. I spend a lot of my time counseling: ‘Where do your strengths lie? Where do you think you can apply those strengths to become truly talented both for yourself and for the mission that you’re serving?’”

Scanlan said many students outside of the ROTC program decide to take the program’s classes simply to learn those leadership skills and knowledge so they can apply them to whatever field they are studying.

“We still have students take our classes that have no aspiration to become an Army officer, but they take our classes to glean leadership development and knowledge to go apply in their civilian careers,” Scanlan said. “That’s kind of a byproduct of the program. We’ll have an additional 20-30 students every term that are here (simply) for that.”

However, Scanlan, who has been in the Army for 12 years and at Liberty for three-and-a-half years, said he is most satisfied by seeing cadets go out after college and make a difference for the Army. He purposefully measures and selects them based on the criteria they will be measured against in four years, in order to set them up for success.

“(This is) a merit-based organization for individuals that want a challenge and that want a professional career when they leave here,” Scanlan said. “To me, this is a no brainer. When you’re standing there at graduation looking at several thousand peers doing the same thing, you have to ask yourself, ‘What’s the difference between me and them?’ I think every year our lieutenants stand out. They’re better equipped to go out there and do great things.”

For more information about Liberty’s ROTC program or scholarships, visit http://www.liberty.edu/studentaffairs/armyrotc.

Ritter is a news reporter.

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