October is here and midterms

are creeping upon us. Every-

one stay focused. It is going to

start getting cool (hopefully)

and the urge to socialize will

bite at your little ankles. Al-

ways remember what we are

here for, and that is, SCHOOL!

That is our number one prior-

ity. This will mark the halfway

point through the end of the

FALL 2010 semester. Now is

not the time for being lazy.

This is the time to study hard

and excel on all assignments,

tests, and quizzes.

Good Luck Trojan Warriors!

T a k i n g t h e O a t h ! T A B L E O F

C O N T E N T S

Word from the

Top

3. Word from SMI

4. BC Corner

Call to Staff

Serry’s Page

Facing Yourr

Faears

PT Test

Land Nav

Pershing Angles

Upcoming Events

I N S I D E T H I S

I S S U E :

Front Page 1

Cadet Highlights 13

M i d t e r m s

OCTO BER

OCTOBER 2010

By.

By CDT Brittany Browne

V I R G I N I A S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y

T R O J A N W A R R I O R B A T T A L I O N

Lt. Armand Serry takes the Oath of OfficerShip

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A W o r d f r o m t h e T o p

OCTOBER 2010

Greetings! Trojans, faculty and friends of the VSU Trojan Warrior Battalion, it is a pleasure

and honor to address you in my first edition as the Trojan Warrior Battalion Commander. As

your new VSU ROTC Commander, I want to personally and publically thank former ROTC

Commander LTC Jeff Garland for all of his hard work and dedication. LTC Garland’s hard

work and dedication has placed your ROTC Battalion in a place of continued success and

growth as a provider of highly trained leaders.

It is my Trojan 2010 vision that we will commission (30) highly trained officers per year with

a minimum of (5) receiving an overall excellence rating from Leader Development and As-

sessment Course (LDAC)/Warrior Forge. I would be remised if I did not comment on the

successes of our MS IVs who completed Warrior Forge over the summer with (5) excellent

ratings and a 95% pass rating! Now, it’s their turn as future Lieutenants to lend a helping hand

as mentors , coaches and trainers for the rest of the VSU ROTC Battalion to ensure that our

greatness continues for years to come……..

This year will be our fourth year in a row that we have achieved mission success and continue

to lead all HBCU’s in commissioning of Cadets to 2nd lieutenants. Without the assistance of

so many organizations such as the VSU Military Alumni Chapter, 555 th Parachute Infantry

Association and a host of other individual supporters we would not be able to offer the so

much needed scholarships to our deserving Cadets.

With school just starting, we as a ROTC Battalion are already engaged in rigorous leadership

training with our Fall - field training exercise (FTX). This will be my first opportunity to gage

the progress of our MS III (juniors) Cadets and at the same time be able to assess our future

within the program with our new incoming MS Is (freshmen) and MSIIs (sophomores).

I strongly encourage all faculty, staff and friends of the ROTC Battalion to come out to the

Military Appreciation Football game and show your support for all of our troops serving this

great nation and help us welcome the new incoming President Dr. Keith Miller. It should be a

great opportunity to show our Trojan spirit while thanking those who serve to give us the free-

doms that we cherish.

Again thank you for the opportunity to be your VSU ROTC Commander and to be able to

speak to you about the rigors of our program! Remember, success seems to be connected with

action. Successful people keep moving, they make mistakes but they don’t quit!

P a g e 2

3

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P a g e 4

W e l c o m e C P T S M I T H

The Trojan Warrior Battalion would like to extend with open

arms, a warm greeting to our newest Cadre Member CPT Smith,

Dwight. CPT Smith joins the Trojan Warrior Battalion after com-

manding the 506th Quartermaster Company at Fort Lee, for 2

years. The final year of his tenure, was spent in Mosul, Iraq (Task

Force 1). CPT Smith is no foreigner to training and leading Sol-

diers. He began his career as an enlisted Soldier in the Engineer

Corps as an 81Q (Terrain Analysis). After Spending 7 years in

Germany, he felt that the move of job specialties would make him

more marketable. In that transition, he switched his MOS

(Military Occupational Specialty) to a 14E (Patriot System Opera-

tion) in attempts to keep the Army’s aircraft operable and combat

ready. CPT Smith’s ambition to excel in leadership didn’t stop, as

he earned his commission through OCS at Ft Benning, GA in

2003. His duties as include Platoon Leader of the 73rd Sapper Company; Execu-

tive Officer of the 249th EN BN, A Co; 49th QM BDE, EN.

C d t . B a t t a l i o n C o m m a n d e r ’ s C o r n e r

C D T B i n g h a m g .

On behalf of The Virginia state University and the Trojan Warrior

Battalion I would like to welcome you to this fall semester. Both the

university and ROTC can provide you with many skills which will

dramatically enhance your ability to achieve excellence. I hope you

will embrace these opportunities that you will be provided.

Those who succeed in the Army ROTC program are students who

excel and want something more out of the college experience. Gen-

erally, these students are scholars who keep their grades up, athletes

who are physically strong and leaders who have a great desire to

learn to improve leadership ability.

The Trojan Warrior Battalion is heading in an innovative and excit-

ing direction. We are developing and implementing new programs. I

encourage all of those thinking about joining the ROTC program to

come out and discover their ability to gain knowledge, confidence,

leadership skills and physical fitness.

ROTC is changing lives and developing future leaders for the United States Army. We pride our-

selves on putting the mission first but people always. Our focus is not just on military issues we also

focus on the person. Our mentorship program is one of our greatest strengths here at the Trojan war-

rior Battalion we pride ourselves on taking care of our cadets and reaching back into our communi-

ties.

So take advantage of the exceptional opportunities and resources that ROTC offers. We invite you to

consider the program while at VSU. If one or more of them might help you to meet your educational

and career goals.

“IRON SHARPENS IRON”

OCTOBER 2010

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O C T O B E R 2 0 1 0

This previous summer the Trojan Warrior Bat-

talion MS IV class successfully completed

LDAC training at Ft. Lewis, Washington. The

training at LDAC prepared these wonderful

cadets for their upcoming year in the program,

and for their future as 2nd Lt. coming into their

senior they are holding Battalion Commander

positions, Company Commander positions, XO

positions and S1– S5 positions.

C a l l o f S t a f f

Cadet staff works hard during train-ing week to plan and schedule

events for this years semester.

Lt. Hill is trying not to burn himself while grilling burgers for the cadet staff

after a long and strenuous training

week.

P a g e 5

6

The R.O.T.C Trojan Warrior Battalion had the privilege of watching one of their own, Armand Serry commis-

sion into the United States Army September 1, 2010. LT.

Serry completed LDAC this past summer, and was on

route to commission and obtaining his bachelors degree from Virginia State University.

LT. Serry will be accomplishing great things in his

career because he has always been “ That Guy”. That guy to help you out , that guy to give you motivational

speeches, and that guy you can rely on and be your

friend.

LT. Serry stands alongside MSG. Harrison at the commis-

sioning ceremony.

OCTOBER 2010 P a g e 6

2nd Lieutenant Armand Serry

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O c t o b e r 2 0 1 0 P a g e 7

F a c i n g Y o u r F e a r s

C W S T T r a i n i n g

CDT Rosario shows that treading wa-

ter can almost look relaxing.

On August 27 2010, the Trojan Warrior Battalion conducted CWST Training at Daniels Gym.

The training forced many cadets to confront their fears of both deep water and heights.

CDT Sims overlooks CDT James as he execute

the butterfly technique. Which is one of the four

authorized technique for the swim test.

CDT Clark jumps into the pool for the 25 m.

8

CWST gives the Cadets a thorough assessment of apprehending realistic scenarios one may come

across as a leader in the US Army. There are vari-

ous stations, the Cadets are tested in. They must

successfully tread water for 5 minutes, complete the don and ditch, swim 15 meters across the

pool with their weapon, and a blindfolded dive

with possession of their weapon. Every other Wednesday, the Cadets must conjure enough

courage to pass these events as commissioning

requirements. The MSIV leadership along with

Cadre is doing whatever possible to provide as-sistance to all Cadets that are weak swimmers.

According to MSIII CDT Dixon, Jonathan

CWST is crucial in our program. “I basically was very poor at treading water, but with the swim-

ming labs allocated, I feel as though my treading

water skills are progressing,” he commented.

F a c i n g Y o u r F e a r s

CDT Griffin trying to make a decision.

OCTOBER 2010 P a g e 8

9

Cadet Reynolds pushs on more

out before time runs out.

Cadet Everett knocks about his

situps during the APFT

Cadets Everett, Irving and Muse continue to press on during the 2

mile run. (l to r)

On August 25th, the Trojan Warrior Battalion tested their

physical capabilities by administering the first APFT of the

year. The APFT is designed for Soldiers to maintain a pre-

sentable physical demeanor and remain combat efficient. Ac-

cording to MSI, CDT Strickland, Larry, the APFT was a

strenuous challenge that caused him to exert muscles he never

really used before. “I felt like I could have done”, better he

grinned. “Next time, I will come back stronger”, he said.

The next APFT will be conducted on Oct. 5th for MSIII’s

and Oct 7th for MS I and MSII personnel. Cadets need to re-

alize that PT is free, one only gets what they puts into it.

P T T e s t

P a g e 9 O C T O B E R 2 0 1 0

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T R O J A N S H E A D T O T H E F I E L D !

P a g e 1 0 O C T O B E R 2 0 1 0

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P a g e 1 1 O C T O B E R 2 0 1 0

Land Navigation is an essential tool for all cadets to

be able to pass LDAC. In ROTC, all cadets are

taught how to navigate from one point to the next

using a compass, protractor, and map.

On September 25, 2010, the Trojan Warrior Battal-

ion placed their fears aside and learned to have con-

fidence in their pace counts and directions of their

compasses as they were placed on a difficult course

at Fort Pickett. MSI and MSII’s were paired with

MSIV leadership to get a better comprehension of

Land Navigation tactics. MSIII’s had a chance to

negotiate the course on their own. For the majority

of the cadets, it was their first time alone, so many

were a little apprehensive, but all doubt was placed

aside as they maneuvered through thick brushes;

traveled rocky roads; and sunk in muddy waters.

MSII CDT Williams, Chante was able to grasp a

visual perspective from what he was actually learn-

ing from the class. “ I’m really looking for more

opportunities to explore the value of land navigation

and how it benefits the needs of making me a better

L a n d N a v i g a t i o n

12

The National Society of Pershing Angels Walk

for Wounded Warriors is a 5K (3.1 Mile) fund-

raising walk that took place on September 25,

2010 at Pocahontas State Park in Chesterfield,

VA. In addition to three other locations: Wash-

ington D.C., Baltimore and Atlanta. The charity

walk benefited the wounded warriors who have

helped protect our country. 100% of the pro-

ceeds that were raised from this charity walk

were donated to the Wounded Warriors Project.

The National Society of Pershing Angels, Inc.

was founded on February 9, 1965 at Morgan State

University. We are the only nationally recognized

drill sorority. We are a military based sorority

with the focus of bringing sisterhood to the

women of the colleges and military department,

provide community outreach service to the sur-

rounding communities, as well as promote mili-

tary excellence. Majority of our members are

serve in the armed forces.

P e r s h i n g A n g e l s T a k e s a W a l k f o r a G o o d

C a u s e

O C T O B E R 2 0 1 0 P a g e 1 2

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U p c o m i n g

E v e n t s

/October/november Events

04-08 Oct Midterms

05/07 Oct– APFT I

14 Oct– Military Appreciation Day

23 Oct - Homecoming

Reminder Cadets Dining Out is 16 April 2011 and we will

need your payments NLT the first week in April it is $30 a

ticket,

General Roberts takes a photo with LTC Tompkins and the Trajon War-

rior Battalion.

CDT Alves makes sure her compass

works using the compass to cheek method, before land nav.

Alumni!

You are cordially invited to the VSU Annual Dining out on 16 April 2011 at Holiday Inn,

Colonial Heights.

If you are unable to attend please consider making a donation; a single $30 donation will

allow a cadet to attend for free.

To find out more on how to contribute contact MSG Dencil Harrison, dcharrison@vsu.edu, 804-524-5082. Or contact the department at

rotc@vsu.edu or 804-524-5216.

Cadet Sheppard gets low to the ground

for the low crawl.

CDT Ellis and CDT Brown finshed confidence

course together. Battle Buddies till the End!

TROJAN WARRIORS!

P a g e 1 3 O C T O B E R 2 0 1 0

General Roberts gives a coin Cadets Wil-liams G., Tinsley D., and Griffiin J. for re-

ceving an E at LDAC. to (from l to r)

14