After weeks of grueling field training at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama, Florida State University student Brooke Newell was finally graduating. Standing in formation with over 300 other Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets in the fierce heat of a Southern summer, she reflected on how much had changed since she first signed on at FSU.
Air Force ROTC
Cadet, Russian and German language student Brooke Newell is preparing to lead the Airmen of tomorrow
Air Force Lt. Col. Joshua Tyler’s dedication spans military, civilian and alumni roles
Joshua Tyler has always had vision. As he watched hotshot fighter jet pilots screaming across the big screen in the 1980s, Tyler knew he had a future in the military. Those dreams continued as he worked his way through the Boy Scouts, reaching the rank of Eagle Scout in his late teens, a natural entry point to military service.
As the nation honored its military veterans this Veterans Day, Florida State University commemorated one decade of the Student Veterans Center. Established 10 years ago on Nov. 11, 2011, the Student Veterans Center helps ease the transition from military service to campus life, integrating student veterans into the general student population and local community.
Florida State University Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps Cadet Elsa Lovejoy is earning dual degrees in Russian language from the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics, part of the College of Arts and Sciences, and international affairs, from the College of Social Sciences and Public Policy. She is a senior, slated to graduate in May 2021.
FSU School of Information (iSchool) senior, Benjamen Johnson, is making history this upcoming Spring. Upon graduating, he will be the first FSU Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) Cadet to commission directly into the United States Space Force (USSF), a department of the Air Force. As an Information Technology (IT) major, Benjamen regards his time here at FSU as influential in shaping both his character and career plans. He is set to be commissioned into the Space Force as a Space Operations Officer the day after he graduates in May 2021.
Three students from the College of Arts and Sciences will study abroad in 2021 to examine important national security issues. Florida State University’s Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics is sending three undergraduate students to study in countries with languages critical to U.S. national security thanks to the David L. Boren Scholarship. The students awarded Boren Scholarships are Russian majors Tetiana Panina and Grace Michaels and anthropology major Lauren Thornberg, who is minoring in Chinese.
Madison Baird, a cadet with Florida State University’s Air Force ROTC Detachment 145, has earned national recognition for her excellence in military and academic performance.
Florida State University’s and the University of Florida’s Air Force and Army ROTC programs are starting a new tradition this year by partnering up for a Game Ball Run prior to the FSU-UF rivalry football game Saturday, Nov. 30, in Gainesville.
FSU’s ROTC programs develop a new generation of leaders
Some want a chance to be part of something larger than themselves. Some come for the financial aid benefits. Others allude to something more personal in their motivation.
Two students from Florida State University’s College of Arts and Sciences are among five from FSU who will study abroad for up to a year in areas of the world critical to U.S. national security and economic prosperity thanks to prestigious Boren Awards, offered through an initiative of the National Security Education Program.
Members of Florida State University’s Air Force ROTC program are flying high after being named the best large Air Force ROTC detachment in the southeastern United States.