Navy ROTC

By Midshipman Jessica Dodson

The Virginia Tech Naval ROTC Battalion charged full speed ahead into the spring semester, riding the successes of the fall. In October, midshipmen and Naval ROTC staff celebrated the 247th birthdays of the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps with the theme “On-Watch 24/7” for the annual Midshipmen Birthday Ball, the battalion’s biggest event of the year. Over 500 midshipmen and their dates, staff, faculty, and community supporters were treated to our guest of honor, retired Adm. Mark Ferguson III, who shared leadership lessons and sea stories. Adm. Ferguson previously served as the commanding officer of U.S. Naval Forces Europe and as the 37th Vice Chief of Naval Operations.  

In December, five graduating midshipmen joined the fleet at the joint commissioning ceremony. Midshipmen James Weldon, Criostoir Neal, Alex Navarrete, Liam Murphy, and Alexander Sanchez were commissioned into military service, along with sixteen new Air Force and Army officers.

ProLab Training 

The Naval ROTC Battalion is continuing their mission of training well-rounded and competent leaders for the fleet with a unique ProLab training schedule. Training includes Officer-Enlisted leader relationships, damage control, customs and courtesies, leadership reaction courses, weapons safety and handling, and drill. New this year, the Naval Battalion has partnered with Hokie Wellness to train midshipmen volunteers in three major wellness areas: mental and emotional health, responsible alcohol use and substance awareness, and sexual responsibility. This program is known as CSADD: Coalition of Students Against Destructive Decisions. The goal of the program is to encourage positive peer interactions, educate midshipmen in wellness resources, and reinforce a culture of shipmates helping shipmates to aid in mission readiness. In the spring, CSADD-trained midshipmen led two class sessions sharing what they learned. CSADD has proved to be effective in increasing the resiliency of the entire battalion.

Spring Midshipmen Champions

Over the university spring break, the VT Corps Marksmanship Unit featuring NROTC Midshimen Jake Bush, Chris Campione, and Tyler Wade competed in the SASP National Championship. Bush and Wade won third place in the Rimfire Pistol Iron Sight (RFPI) competition. Campione won third place in Centerfire Pistol Iron Sight (CFPI), first place for Centerfire Pistol Optics, and highest overall in the CFPI division. Additionally, for the third year in a row, the VTCC Women’s Basketball team, featuring NROTC midshipmen Erin Gravette, Lauren Gravette, Laura Huddleston, and Jacqueline Wode, won the national Flyin’ Irish Tournament competition hosted at Notre Dame University. Finally, four Marine option midshipmen from Raiders company -Aidan Adair, Aidan Denny, Cameron Waldron, and Samuel Williams - competed in the “Mad Anthony Mud Run” obstacle course race, winning first place as the fastest male team!

Senior Send-off 

In October, the May 2023 commissioning class received their service assignments. Midshipman Peter Wang was selected for Naval Special Warfare. Midshipman Andrew Garland served as another trailblazer by being selected for Marine aviation. In February, surface warfare-selected midshipmen participated in the national ship selection ceremony in which midshipmen select their first ship and homeport based on their national ranking. Midshipman Marissa Bell, one of three slated nuclear surface warfare midshipmen from Virginia Tech, was ranked third of 229 in the nation! She selected the USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) out of Rota, Spain. Bell was the midshipmen commander of the NROTC Battalion during the fall 2022 semester and is sure to continue a legacy of success in the fleet. The Virginia Tech NROTC Battalion is proud to remain one of the top units in the nation, providing ready-to-lead junior officers to the United States Navy and Marine Corps.