CRB NEWSLETTER

Those who succeed in the

Army ROTC program are stu-

dents who excel and want

something more out of the

college experience. General-

ly, these students

are scholars who keep their

grades up, athletes who are

physically strong and lead-

ers who have a great desire

to learn.

In This Issue

Fall Field Training Exercise

Spotlight on Prior– Service

Summer Training: LTC

Project GO– BU

CULP Program

Calling All Alumni!

Commander’s Comments

Photo Gallery

Contact Us

Fall Field Training Exercise

Mission: The Charles River Battalion conducts the Fall Field Training Exercise at Fort Devens, MA, from 27-29 SEP 13, to train and assess cadets on individual and collective LDAC tasks.

To complete this mission, the cadets of the Charles River Battalion spent a

weekend in Fort Devens familiarizing themselves with the M16 A2 rifle in

Basic Rifle Marksmanship, tying Swiss seats to rappel off of a 50 foot tower,

using critical thinking and problem-solving skills in the Field Leader Reaction

Course (FLRC), and conducting several iterations of day and night land navi-

gation. For many cadets, this was their first time eating MREs (Meals Ready

to Eat) and firing a weapon. This not only provided insight for new cadets into

the skills they will be developing in ROTC, but also provided the junior class

an opportunity to practice their leadership skills for their training and assess-

ment in the upcoming summer, at the Leader’s Development and Assess-

ment Course (LDAC).

Charles River Battalion November 5th, 2013

Spotlight on Prior Service Mark Ostroski, MSII, Bridgewater State University

Before ROTC, my MOS was 31B or Military Police Officer. I was a Spe-

cialist and my job ranged from gunner to eventually team leader in the 4th

brigade 10th Mountain Division out of Fort Polk, LA. I trained as a combat

or brigade MP towards my deployment scheduled in October 2010 and

spent time as a gunner to familiarize myself with weapons and all other

concurrent training. I decided to apply for a Green to Gold scholarship so

that I could push forward my leadership skills and become a commis-

sioned officer.

The leadership of the MSIV’s and cadre members is helping to develop

my problem solving and leadership skills so that I can one day become a

role model for my soldiers. When I am commissioned I would like to

branch into the infantry as an active duty officer, in hopes to shape and

define my soldiers to become experts and professionals at everything

they do.

I believe that great leadership is not defined as who you are, but rather

who your subordinates are and how they react to situations and obstacles

presented to them. My advice for the cadets in the Army Charles River

Battalion who have never had prior enlisted experience is to be thinking

soldiers. As future Army Officers, it is up to you to make a difference, your

soldiers will follow if you prove that you can lead.

CRB Conducts Pass In Review On October 22nd, the cadets of the Charles

River Battalion participated in a tri-service Pass

in Review ceremony for their leadership.

The Pass In Review is a long– standing military

tradition in which a commander inspects his or

her troops. The ceremony requires the troops to

be disciplined and well-versed in Drill and Cere-

mony, so that when they march by the com-

mander’s party they can be seen as an impres-

sive force.

The CRB was delighted to welcome Colonel

Everett S. Spain as the reviewing officer for the

ceremony. In his speech to the cadets, he em-

phasized the qualities of leadership that are to

be expected of them, including Loyalty, Duty,

Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity and

Personal Courage.

The Cadet Staff Stands at Attention

Mark Ostroski

Cadets participate in a road march (left), conduct battle drills as a squad (middle), and negotiate obstacles (right)

Leader’s Training Course (LTC) Christina La Fleur, MSIII, Boston University

LTC (Leader’s Training Course) is a summer camp for cadets who did not complete Basic Course for the ROTC

program. The camp takes two years of Leadership Labs, PT, and various ceremonies, and condenses them

into 29 days of constant Army. “Constant Army” is a concept that is completely foreign to most cadets until they

go to LDAC. Constant Army is never having more than 7 hours of sleep, and rarely more than 5. It means

cleaning toilets during fire guard and, for some people, their very first totally open showers and the disappear-

ance of any concept of privacy. It means standing at parade rest while waiting in line for chow, snapping to at-

tention every time you take a single step forward. It means marching everywhere.

For prior service cadets, this is hardly anything new. In fact, LTC represents a marketing, more than training,

opportunity for the ROTC program, and so has a high adventure focus and far more lax environment compared

to Basic Training or other programs outside ROTC. But the typical campus cadet never has experienced any-

thing even close to this.

Beyond the day to day grind, LTC provides two unique experiences: drill sergeants and water operations. All

the other events and activities of LTC are replicated in some degree in a typical military science class progres-

sion. However those dreaded figures, along with one of the best team- building activities, are unique to the LTC

experience.

Water operations began with each squad looking through a pile of junk and working together to build a boat out

of it. Like a lot of activities, the success of the mission depended on the cooperation of the whole team, but few

things are more motivating than beating the other squads in a breakneck race. Next you put your ruck on the

line by building a raft, again with your buddy, made of your own packs, boots, rubber ducks (fake M16 rifles),

and ponchos. Try dipping your only set of dry clothes in the lake. Now imagine the feeling of success and pride

in your team when they come out bone dry. That is what water ops does.

On the other hand, few words can fill a platoon with more dread than the words “half left FACE.” It means

pushups are coming. A lot of them. It means you are in deep. Drill sergeants were there in your face nearly 24

Leader’s Training Course, continued

hours a day: to wake you up, to turn off the lights, to wake you up again once the lights were turned off, and all

day long. You don’t make the same mistake twice when the first time leaves you in the first count of the squat

bender until told otherwise.

Drill sergeants are most often incredibly experienced and knowledgeable people, and those at LTC are no ex-

ception. As the month progresses they tell more of their stories, and, intentionally or unintentionally, impress

cadets and instill respect beyond rank or their ability to demand corrective PT.

The LTC experience is like nothing else in the ROTC program. It is a new kind of exposure, a whole different

level of “team building,” and involves completely different kinds of pressures. Even for a cadet who has been

involved for some time on campus, the relationship with drill sergeants and your squad inevitably changes your

view of Army, ROTC, and your role in all of it.

An LTC Experience Kait Phelan, MSIII, Wheaton College

This summer I attended the Leadership Training

Course at Fort Knox. From June 16th to July 17

th, I

learned basic soldiering skills and caught up to my

peers in the ROTC program. I was very proud to rep-

resent Boston University and Wheaton College at

LTC.

Cadet Anthony D’Angelo (top left) and Cadet Kait Phelan (bottom left) participate in the Obstacle Course and FLRC, re-spectively. LTC cadets work together in a team building exercise (bottom right).

Cadet, Student, World Traveler Kelsey Kornblut, MSIII, Boston University

This summer I studied abroad at Fudan University in Shanghai, China

through Project Global Officer (Project GO) and learned a year’s worth of

Mandarin Chinese in 8 weeks. Also studying abroad with me was Cadet

Wojtasinski and 35 other Army, Air Force, and Navy Cadets/Midshipmen

from around the country as well as regular BU students, which made for a

very diverse and fun group.

I had studied 2 years of Chinese at Boston University already, so I was

taking advanced Third Year Chinese while I was there. During the week, I

had 3 hours of classroom instruction and a 15-minute one on one session

with a professor each day. During the weekends, I was able to explore

Shanghai and other cities in China to include Suzhou, Wuzhen, and Qing-

dao. The program also took us to Beijing for a week where we got to climb

the Great Wall, visit Tiananmen Square, and walk around the Forbidden

City.

While I learned over 2,000 characters from my textbook this summer, just

being directly immersed in the culture improved my Chinese more than

textbooks and classes ever could have. Some of the best speaking I ever

did was with cab drivers, hotel employees, cooks at food stands, and

sales people at bargain markets. Overall, the knowledge and cultural un-

derstanding that I gained while I was in China this summer is something

that I will always be grateful for and I cannot wait until I can go back. I tru-

ly could not recommend doing Project GO in Shanghai enough.

LTC– Take Three

Ryan Coolen, MSIII, Curry

College

Being part of Leaders Training

Course from 08July to 05AUG

has made me a stronger per-

son both physically and men-

tally and prepared me greatly

for the many years ahead. Be-

tween the amount of training I

endured and the people I

worked with, I would not trade

this experience for anything.

Cadet Ryan Coolen stands at attention for the camera

CDT Kelsey Kornblut and CDT Wojtasinki on the Great Wall of China

History Lesson

Military education at Boston

University dates back to

World War I, when the Stu-

dent’s Army Training corps

was established. Units have

been on campus since

1919, with the exception of a

ten-year period during the

1970s.

Army ROTC’s presence at

Boston University resumed

in 1980 when it was accord-

ed recognition as a host de-

tachment. More then three

thousand military officers

have received degrees from

Boston University. Some

two thousand one hundred

officers have been commis-

sioned through Boston Uni-

versity’s Army ROTC pro-

gram.

Cadet Zaniewski with Paraguayan cadets in the English classroom.

Military and Culture Combine Cadet Benjamin Zaniewski, MSII, Stonehill College

This past summer I participated in the USACC's CULP Program (Cultural Un-

derstanding and Language Proficiency). I was selected to travel to the South

American country of Paraguay with a team of 12 cadets from schools across the

United States. Our mission was to serve as an English language training team.

We taught Paraguayan military officers, civilians, students, and Paraguayan

cadets lessons on the English language through the Paraguayan Ministry of

Defense.

Our team also met and worked with members of the United States Embassy

and did several public relations events including celebrating the birthday of the

Army with high ranking officials in both the Paraguayan and United States mili-

tary. I was fortunate enough to meet up with an Army Special Forces ODA and

receive extremely valuable training with marksmanship on a number of weapon

platforms.

Our team also visited the neighboring country of Argentina, rappelled off a rock

face, explored the local markets, and interacted with countless citizens. It pro-

vided me with an increased global awareness, a better appreciation for the Ar-

my outside of ROTC, and a desire to travel around the world. The whole trip

was an unforgettable experience and I highly recommend it to any cadet looking

for a once in a lifetime adventure.

Calling All Alumni!

Whether you have two years or twenty years of experience in the Army, the cadets of the Charles River

Battalion would like to hear about your experiences since commissioning as 2nd Lieutenants. Please fill

us in by sending us a profile of yourself to CDT Yaghoobian at tgy@bu.edu, in the following format:

- Picture

- 1-2 paragraphs, including:

When you graduated from ROTC, and in what branch

Current position and location, explanation of duties

Previous command, staff and special assignments

Military and any extra civilian education

We look forward to hearing from you!

Commander’s Comments

Boston University Army ROTC– 9 Decades and Still Going Army Strong

I want to personally extend warmest regards and thanks to our distinguished graduates, our department’s

supporters, and 9 decades of Army Officers from Boston University ROTC. I am personally humbled and

grateful for the experience to lead this organization. These are extremely exciting times here at BU and in

our program. I am so amazed by the quality of the Cadets, their commitment to Service, and their eager-

ness to uphold the legacy we all are a part of. The program is strong and commissioning outstanding officers

for all components of the Army.

Boston University Army ROTC is at a critical juncture. We can no longer delay in establishing a strong and

enduring alumni organization that is capable of positive influence for the future of the Charles River Battal-

ion. We could use your help in two areas. First, we need to improve and update our records in order to

achieve the broadest possible circulation of a semesterly newsletter. The newsletter is written and designed

by Cadets in order to connect our future with our past. Any updates on addresses or where alumni are at in

the world is greatly appreciated. Second, we need a collective voice and organization that can muster re-

sources to make our Cadets more competitive, either through influence or donations.

Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter and assisting in passing our message along. It is our

goal to make this newsletter endure by inculcating our Cadets with the Charles River Battalion tradition and

their role in making a difference for future generations of Officers from Boston University. We also intend to

use this as a mechanism to communicate links to our Facebook page, our Linked In page, events such as an

alumni reception, and ways to stay connected. Thank you again for your Service and your interest in Boston

University Army ROTC.

Boston University Army ROTC

128 Bay State Road

Boston, MA 02215

Boston University Army ROTC—Born Free Serve Free Die Free

Photo Gallery Contact Us

Detachment

128 Baystate Rd

Boston MA, 02215

Phone: (617)-353-

4025/4026

Fax 617-353-7270

Recruiting Opera-

tions Officer:

Major Josh Goodrich

Phone: 617-353-4025

Email: joshgood@bu.edu

Cadets navigate FLRC obstacles (top left), direct each other in FLRC lanes (top right), compete in the tri-service military competition Sheehan Cup (second row, left), conduct Squad STX (second row, middle), conduct a swim test (second row, right), con-duct combat ori-ented PT (bottom left), and partici-pate in Pass in Review (bottom right)