Virginia Tech Army ROTC cadet receives prestigious award

Col. Jamie Cogbill, at right, pins the Bronze Cross Award on Cadet Jack Welsome.

Cadet Jack Welsome, a senior in Virginia Tech’s Army ROTC program and the university’s Corps of Cadets, was presented with the prestigious Bronze Cross for Outstanding Achievement award from the Legion of Valor organization.

This award is only presented to one in every 4,000 Army ROTC cadets, and the recipients must be in the top 25 percent of their class and represent the leadership qualities of academic excellence, community involvement, and athletic participation.

Welsome fulfills these qualities in every way, says Col. Jamie Cogbill, professor of military science and head of the university's Army ROTC program.

Most notably, he is ranked sixth out of over 6,000 senior Army ROTC cadets in the nation. In addition, he ranks in the top 6 percent of students in Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering and in the top 16 percent of students in the undergraduate biomedical engineering major. He has earned a place on the dean’s list for six consecutive semesters.

He also participates in intramural soccer.

Welsome is not simply an Army leader, but a leader in the classroom and within the community. He has been heavily involved with Corps of Cadets, having served as a company first sergeant, a member of the Color Guard, and the 2nd Battalion athletic officer. He served as the Corps’ Bravo Company executive officer and cadre staff officer.

Notably, he was also selected as one of 20 cadets to attend the Corps’ Global Scholars Program in Europe to study the D-Day Invasion.
As part of the Army ROTC’s New River Battalion, he served as the Charlie Company first sergeant. He was selected twice for Cadet Troop Leader Training in Germany and at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California. In December 2020, he completed the Air Assault Course at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

This past summer, Welsome attended the Army’s Advanced Camp, where he earned the coveted Reconnaissance Commando award as well as the highest rating of “outstanding.” While at camp, he was ranked by his peers as No. 1 in his squad and No. 2 in his platoon.

In 2020, Cadet Welsome received another prestigious award as the recipient of the American Legion Award for Military Excellence.

In the Army, the motto is “Winning Matters,” and Welsome embodies that motto in every way, Cogbill said. Welsome hopes to earn his commission as an aviation officer upon graduation from Virginia Tech in May 2022.