Southern Oregon University ROTC

In honor of those who have fallen.

Raider alum and US Army CPT Bruno de Solenni '04, of Crescent City, CA, was killed in action in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, on 20 September 2008.

Wishing everyone a beautiful Memorial Day! In memory of all those who have given their life in the line of duty to protect this great nation. Thank you to all those who currently serve, veterans, and the brave men and woman who gave everything.

More pictures from our spring FTX

Senior Cadet Edition
Meet MS4 Cadet Jordan Brines! CDT Brines will be graduating fall term with a degree in Communications with an emphasis in social media engagement. Additionally, he plans on commissioning active duty aviation but since he is apart of the MSIII cohort for now, his other top 2 branching options are infantry or military intelligence. Some advice that he has for the younger MS classes is, “Finding motivation to participate and fulfill ROTC requirements can sometimes be difficult. The best thing you can do for yourself is push through and demonstrate grit. A little pain now will pay off later.”

Contracting Alert!
Congratulations to Cadet Malubay for securing an opportunity to commission as an officer in the US Army! Her hard work has not only allowed her to join the ranks of Cadet Command but also win 3 different awards for the year. She represents the SOU ROTC mission statement and will continue on as a future Second Lieutenant.

Over the weekend, Raider Company and our sister program UofO ROTC had a four-day training exercise at Toketee Airstrip. This was an excellent opportunity for our MS III cadets to practice their leadership skills as they prepare for Advanced Camp this summer. This was the the peak measurement for the final “Sprint” phase of the MSIII training. The MSI’s and MSII’s also got the chance to learn about common soldier tasks and lower level leadership. Overall, Spring FTX was a significant event for all cadets to learn and prepare for their next step to become an officer in the US Army.

Senior Cadet edition:
Meet MS4 Cadet Michael Benn! He will be graduating with a bachelor's degree in Computer Science and branching Signal Corps as an officer. Cadet Benn will attend SBOLC and then continue on to his active duty station next year. His advice for the younger cadets is to, “Give your best at everything you do, homework assignments, classes, working out, ROTC, and the Army. Only by applying oneself will you succeed genuinely; those who don't are usually doing the bare minimum to get by and are setting themselves up for failure in their career, school, and fitness.”
Senior quote:
"Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender that is strength."
- Mahatma Gandhi / Arnold Schwarzenegger

Senior Cadet edition:
Meet MS4 Cadet Lily Jantzer! She will be graduating from SOU at the end of Spring Term with a Sociology and Anthropology degree. After graduation, she plans to attend Texas Tech for Graduate school and pursue a Master's degree in Human Development and Family Science. As an officer she will be branching Ordnance for the Texas Army National Guard. Her advice for our younger Cadets in the program is, "Lean on your fellow Cadets. Go into ROTC training events and challenges as a chance to get better, learn, and develop as a leader”.

Senior Cadet edition
Meet MS4 Cadet Matthew Yuchnick! Cadet Yuchnick is graduating at the end of spring term with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and concentration in Management. His plan after graduation is to work hard and prepare for Infantry Basic Officer Leader Course (IBOLC). After completing his training, future 2LT Yuchnick will lead an infantry platoon attached to the 1-186 in Medford, OR. His advice to the younger Cadets is to, “Stick with ROTC and get paid to go to school. It will all work out in the end if you are able to manage your time and balance the overwhelming tasks at hand.”

Meet Cadet Tristan Ellingsworth!
Cadet Ellingsworth is an Outdoor Adventure Major with a Military Science minor. He intends to branch Active Duty Infantry at either Fort Campbell or Fort Bragg for his PL and XO time. After that, he would like to attend SFAS to earn an opportunity to serve as Special Forces Officer. He has a few goals for the Army. Some of them are passing Ranger, Pathfinder school, and earning the Expert Infantryman’s Badge. His largest goal is to continue to serve my family as a husband and father. He currently an Active Duty Staff Sergeant, serving as an ROTC Cadet in his day-to-day job. Some of his hobbies included learning hands-on skills like carpentry, metalworking, wiring, and plumbing. He is also a massive Star Wars and Lord of the Rings fan. He would like to give his shout-out to his beautiful wife Ann for being with him every step of his Army journey. He also would like to extend his shout-out to his friends in the Army, who has opened the door, taught him lessons, hold him accountable, and invested in him in ways that he can never repay.

Contracting Alert! 🚨 Congratulations to Cadet Renfroe for securing an opportunity to commission into the United States Army! Her hard work has enabled her to join the ranks of Cadet Command and pursue a career as a future officer.

During the past weekend, Southern Oregon University ROTC as well as our sister program, the University of Oregon ROTC, combined for a 4 day field training exercise at Grizzly Peak. The MSIII's are nearing the end of their "walk" phase in preparation for summer training so they had the opportunity to swap leadership roles throughout several missions. The MSI's and II's were also given experience on lower level leadership and how to deal with cold weather training. With the two programs integrated, different practices were presented resulting in an overall knowledgeable experience for everyone.