AFROTC: Calling a few good men and women.
The Air Force Reserved Officer Training Corps is a program designed to prepare college students for entry into the Air Force, while allowing them to complete their degrees. Nationwide, AFROTC programs produce 2,000 officers each year, or 40 percent of incoming Air Force officers.
Throughout the United States, there are 144 AFROTC programs, or detachments, involving approximately 800 schools. On average, each detachment has 100 cadets. Saint Louis University hosts Detachment 207, made up of 131 cadets.
Though Detachment 207 is based at SLU, cadets come from a number of schools. The majority of cadets are students from SLU and Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. Others come from Washington University, University of Missouri-St. Louis, McKendree College and Belleville Area College. Detachment 207 also has a cross-town agreement with Harris-Stowe State College, from which there are currently no cadets.
AFROTC cadets are required to take eight classes before graduation and attend field training. Freshman cadets take “The Foundations of the United States Air Force” to learn basics about the military. Sophomore cadets take “The Evolution of USAF Air and Space Power” to learn about aerospace development since the time of the Wright Brothers. Both of these once-a-week classes are an hour long, worth one credit hour each.
Between sophomore and junior years, cadets attend four weeks of field training. Cadets are trained in such areas as leadership, teamwork, survival, weapons and physical fitness.
During their last two years of the AFROTC program, the cadets enter the Professional Officer Corps, during which they receive a $200 per month allowance. This part of the program focuses on leadership skills. Juniors take “Air Force Leadership Studies” and seniors take “National Security Affairs,” which are both three credit hour courses.
Major Mark Ochoa, Detachment 207’s Education Officer, said that AFROTC “provides an opportunity to learn about leadership and develop leadership skills with minimal consequences for mistakes.”
Juniors and seniors practice what they are learning by running the weekly Leadership Lab, a two-hour lab held on Wednesday evenings from six to eight. All cadets attend these labs. During Lead Labs, cadets learn about such topics as Air Force customs, the rank structure and management techniques. They also practice marching and drill, review proper uniform wear and take the physical fitness test.
An option for students who become interested in AFROTC as sophomores is to enter a two-year program. These students attend five weeks of field training; the extra week condenses the first two years’ curriculum into seven days. They then join the four-year program’s juniors and seniors in the Professional Officer Corps to complete the program.
During their senior year, cadets are given assignments for where they will be stationed after graduation. Upon graduation, AFROTC cadets participate in a ceremony where they are commissioned as Second Lieutenants. They start with a salary of $30,000-25 percent of which is tax-free-plus benefits.
The AFROTC provides a variety of scholarship opportunities. There are two-, three- and four-year scholarships available, ranging from partial tuition to full rides. SLU makes up the difference by covering room and board, as well as any tuition not included in the scholarships. The Air Force scholarships also provide students with a $150 allowance per month. Most cadets in Detachment 207 receive some kind of scholarship.
These scholarships obligate cadets to serve in the Air Force for four years after graduation. Because of the cost of their extensive training, navigators must serve for six years and pilots must serve for 10 years.
Pilots and navigators are the most demanded professionals in the Air Force. Lt. Col. Ron Davis, Jr., commander of Detachment 207, said, “If anybody wants to become a pilot, now is the prime time to do it.”
Throughout the AFROTC program, three core values are emphasized: Integrity First, Service before Self, and Excellence in All We Do. Davis explained how these values will help cadets throughout life whether in military context or not.
