THE GRIFFON • Summer 2015 • 41
Clemson ROTC Cadets Sink and Swim in Water Survival Test By Ken Scar 108th Training Command (IET) Public Affairs
CLEMSON, S.C. — More than sixty future Army Reserve, Guard and active duty officers in the Clemson University Reserve Officer Training Corps “Fighting Tigers Battalion” were tested on their stamina and personal courage with the Combat Water Survival Test (CWST) in the Fike Recreation Center pool Jan. 29. “This is my favorite exercise that we do,” said cadet Sara Fedyschyn, a senior from Kings Mountain, North Carolina who is enrolled in the Simultaneous Membership Program, in which she participates in both Army Reserve training and ROTC at the same time. Fedyschyn and her fellow seniors were conducting the drills as a part of their leadership training. “This is good stuff! This kind of training teaches me a lot,” said Dwaney Mills, an Army Reserve cadet from Rock Hill, South Carolina studying criminal justice, adding that he fully expects to apply the lessons learned during these ROTC training exercises to his Army Reserve unit once he graduates. Mills spent the afternoon alongside a few dozen of his
A Clemson University Reserve Officers Training Corps cadet steps off a five-meter diving board, blindfolded, during the Combat Water Survival Test in the Fike Recreation Center Jan. 29, 2015. The CWST evaluates each cadet’s stamina in water and their ability to complete three stations while wearing a uniform. Passing the events helps ensure they have the fundamental water survival skills necessary to lead Soldiers in a hostile environment where there’s water. Photo by Sgt. Ken Scar, 108th Training Command (IET), Public Affairs
fellow cadets being submerged, dunked, blindfolded and generally
tormented by Fedyschyn and the seniors – but all for a good reason.
The CWST is designed to see CLEMSON ROTC page 42
