Naval ROTC News
Despite the challenges and changes of the past pandemic year, the Virginia Tech Naval ROTC unit remained resilient and ready, commissioning the largest single Naval ROTC class in the nation in 2021 — 42 Navy ensigns and nine Marine Corps second lieutenants!
On campus, the unit bid farewell to several key staff – Cmdr. Ryan Stoddard, Lt. Allen MacDonald, Lt. Michael Sullivan, and Lt. Kurt Smith — and welcomed a new unit executive officer, Cmdr. Griffin Hetrick, and several advisors, Lt. Will Herman ’16, Lt. Zach Rodriguez, and Lt. James Whittlesey.
At the end of October, the unit bid farewell to the last two ensigns from the class of 2021, Sam Jubon and Jeff Ackiss, as they headed off to the fleet. They, along with 30 other ensigns at the unit through the summer, made significant contributions to unit readiness and to the Corps of Cadets, conducting summer prospective student tours and preparing inbound freshman midshipmen.
Summer Cruise
After canceling all summer training in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Navy and Marine Corps resumed fleet training cruises this year.
The unit coordinated 135 scholarship midshipmen traveling across the country to ships, submarines, aircraft squadrons, and Marine Corps sites for training from May to August.
Additionally, three midshipmen completed the rigorous SEAL officer assessment summer training program, enabling them to compete for future selection into the Naval Special Warfare community. Marine-option midshipmen participated in a dedicated “Marine Month” training program, and five rising seniors completed the challenging Officer Candidates School capstone training course, enabling them to commission after earning their academic degree.
“My summer cruise experience was a great opportunity to be fully immersed in the Navy life,” said Midshipman Shelby Pierson ’22. “I was able to shadow in an aviation squadron and understand the daily operations from aircraft maintenance to flight operations.”
Fall Training
In August, the unit welcomed 100 freshman midshipmen, 30 of them with four-year scholarships, and resumed in-person training in Blacksburg for the battalion of 300 midshipmen.
To improve skills in critical core competencies, Navy professional labs transitioned to company-level, practical and “hands-on” training focused on damage control, warrior toughness, breath work and mindfulness training, close-order drill, swim qualifications, financial management, and Navy customs and courtesies.
Service Selection
On Oct. 15, Navy service assignments were announced to the senior class. Midshipmen screened well in the Navy’s most competitive selections with 10 submarine warfare, three Naval special warfare, one surface warfare nuclear propulsion, and the unit’s first-ever cyber warfare engineer select, Bernie Cieplak ’22, one of only three selected nationally!
Additionally, the unit assigned 18 surface warfare, seven Naval aviation, two Naval flight officers, and five selected for Marine ground option.