Raiders Lead the Way

ROTC Cadets Learn to Lead by Serving the Veterans Who Came Before Them

When cadets in Shippensburg University’s Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program graduate, they go on to serve as active duty officers in the US Army Reserve or Army National Guard. Most will lead a platoon of roughly thirty enlisted soldiers. To prepare them for this, the College of Education and Human Services’ ROTC program provides hands-on service learning opportunities, like the Annual Shippensburg Military Science 5K/10K.

“The best way, in our view, to help develop young leaders is for them to do it,” said Lt. Col. Chris Morton, chair of the Military Science Department. “We do practical application in our labs, but one of the ways that we also apply it is in events like this.”

Held during homecoming weekend, the race is organized, promoted, and executed by cadets as a fundraiser for the Military Science Department and Boulder Crest Retreat in Virginia. On the Fortieth Anniversary of the event this past fall, cadets registered more than 100 runners and raised roughly $4,000. Of that, $2,500 was donated to the Virginia Retreat Center. Boulder Crest is a nonprofit organization that provides Posttraumatic Growth programs to combat veterans and their families, and it depends entirely on donations of money and time to fulfill its mission. Ships’ ROTC cadets give both, donating money raised by the Shippensburg Military Science 5K/10K each year and contributing to service projects during their limited winter break time. Juniors and seniors in the program visit the retreat in December to help maintain the grounds as volunteers.

The best way, in our view, to help develop young leaders is for them to do it.

—Lt. Col. Chris Morton, chair of the Military Science Department

“By taking the students down to the retreat, they actually are seeing the impact of our hard work from the fundraiser and then continue the service by physically donating their time and energy,” said Morton. “They get to see how important and impactful a place like this is for veterans, and really feel connected to the cause when giving back to our local community.”

During the course of their service learning trip at Boulder Crest in 2018, cadets had the opportunity to meet with retreat founder and Chairman Ken Falke. It was an opportunity that senior and Battalion Commander Faith Negron had a lasting impact on. “He started (Boulder Crest) not knowing how much money he would have to put into it or how much money he would be getting for it,” Negron said. “It wasn’t for any publicity or any money. He just did it because he felt like other people needed help more than he did.”

“The idea of service to others really needs to be for a lifetime,” said Morton. “I try to model that and impress that upon our students so that they understand: just because your military service ends doesn’t mean that your service to others ends. I think that’s an important component of their education and development.”

The Forty-First Annual Shippensburg Military Science 5K/10K is more than ten months away, but the Department of Military Science is always happy to relay donations to Boulder Crest and encourages anyone interested in being a sponsor for the next race to follow the department on Facebook at facebook.com/shiprotc for updates.

Leading through service is a key component of the Raider ROTC program, which cadets regularly display through fundraisers and community volunteer work.