Congratulations to EWU Fighting Eagles Battalion alumnus, Second Lieutenant (2LT) Andreas Brazier for successfully completing the rigorous U.S. Army Ranger School! 2LT Andreas said he has been reading, thinking and dreaming about becoming a Ranger since 2001 and we are proud of him for making it happen. This school has less than a 40% passing rate and takes true grit, leadership and tactical skills to earn the distinction of being an Army Ranger.
Ranger School is one of the toughest training courses for which a Soldier can volunteer. Army Rangers are experts in leading Soldiers on difficult tactical missions. Achieving this level of expertise requires rigorous training. For more than two months, Ranger students train to exhaustion, pushing the limits of both their minds and bodies.
Congratulations to the Fighting Eagles Battalion 2021 Distinguished Scholars who demonstrated academic excellence in their respective degree programs! This includes Cadets who made the Dean’s List or achieved excellence as a nursing or master’s degree student. These individuals have shown they are committed to being a scholar, athlete and leader. Great job for representing the Fighting Eagles Battalion and Eastern Washington University!
The Fall 2021 Recipients of the Distinguished Scholar Award
MSI (Freshman) Class:
Aceyona Gamino – Pasco, Wa – Business
Ellie Brandhagen – Spokane, Wa – PreNursing
Jack Barclay – Exercise Science
Mary Kovell – Bothell, Wa – Music
MSII (Sophomore) Class:
Nik Chapple – Glendora, Ca – International Business
Kristen Buckingham – Kirkland, Wa – Exercise Science
MSIII (Junior) Class:
Josh Browning – Spokane, Wa – Entrepreneurship
Jessica Dundas – Spokane, Wa – PreNursing
Joseph Flippen – Spokane, Wa – History
Daisy Palencia – Prosser, Wa – Computer Science
Kaitlynn Taylor – Plains, Mt – Human Resources
Chandler Tomason – Charlevoix, Michigan – Sociology
Sam Yancey – Spokane, Wa – Mechanical Engineering
MSIV & MSV (Senior) Class:
Valentino Olmstead – Pullman, Wa – Forensic Science
Corina Lindsey – Bellingham, Wa – Criminal Justice
Adam Burnside – Rancho Cucamonga, Ca – Business Management
Thomas Luce – Spokane, Wa – History Education
Everett Kuhnel – Camas, Wa – Geography
Zachary Becker – Liberty Lake, Wa – MBA
Kaylie Meyers-Watters – Cheney, Wa – Nursing
Congratulations to Cadets Kristen Buckingham and Maximiliano Ruiz who both earned Army scholarships starting this quarter! Each scholarship includes $34,000 to pay full tuition for their degree as well as $1,200 per year for books and a $420 monthly stipend. These scholarships will enable Kristen and Max to complete their degrees at EWU and commission as U.S. Army Officers. Kristen is studying Exercise Science and Max, Biology. We are excited to have them join the team!
Congratulations to 1st Lieutenant Bryce Stanton, class of 2019, on successfully completing the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program (RASP 2)! He will move on to join the 75th Ranger Regiment where he will lead some of the most elite combat Soldiers in the U.S. Army. This accomplishment follows after Bryce also earned the Expert Infantry and Parachutist badges. We are thankful that we were part of his journey and now get to see him flourish as a leader serving our nation.
The Eastern Washington University (EWU) Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), “Fighting Eagles” battalion is pleased to announce that for the third year in a row one of our faculty members has been recognized with a U.S. Army Cadet Command Instructor of the Year Award. Sergeant First Class (SFC) Ratliff was recognized as the 2021 Non-Commissioned Officer Instructor of the Year out of all 274 ROTC battalions across the country.
On June, 18 2021, the Eastern Washington University (EWU) Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) “Fighting Eagles” battalion conducted its Spring Commissioning Ceremony. Due to COVID mitigation measures, the ceremony was held in the EWU Fieldhouse with commissionees and guests wearing masks. The moderator for the commissioning ceremony was EWU Army ROTC Recruiting and Operations Officer (ROO), Ms. Linda Moody:
Ms. Linda Moody served as the moderator for the ceremony.
The path to this day was not an easy one for the commissionees. All the Cadets conducted up to 4 years of military training in the ROTC program, had to meet rigorous academic requirements, build strong physical fitness, among a host of other challenging requirements. The most challenging thing these young leaders had to face was having to commission in the midst of a deadly pandemic. The commissionees had to complete over a year of school entirely online and conduct their ROTC training partially online and in person with specified health and safety protocols. They are a truly remarkable group of young leaders well deserving to commission as Army officers.
Spring 2021 EWU Army ROTC Commissioning Class.
The commissioning ceremony began with the singing of the national anthem followed by opening remarks by the EWU Army ROTC Professor of Military Science, Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Jonathan Stafford.
Following the remarks from LTC Stafford, the guest speaker retired Chief Warrant Officer 5 Gary Nisker from the EWU Class of 1976 gave his speech. Chief Nisker provided some inspiring words to our Cadets about his time in ROTC to include a few humorous moments.
Following CW5 Nisker’s speech he was then inducted into the EWU Military Science Hall of Fame. EWU Army ROTC appreciates CW5 Nisker speaking to our Cadets and we congratulate him on becoming part of the Hall of the Fame:
LTC Stafford presents CW5 Nisker with the plaque that will hang in Cadet Hall inducting him into the EWU Military Science Hall of Fame.
After CW5 Nisker’s speech the Cadets the Cadets each came forward to be administered the Army Oath of Office to officially commission them as a 2LT into the U.S. Army.
2LT J.P. Dutton (left) receives the oath of office from his father retired Air Force Colonel James Dutton.
The Cadets then had family members pin their rank on their uniforms:
2LT Collin Galbreath is pinned his rank by his parents.2LT Austin Bristow was pinned his rank by his uncle and grandmother.2LT Megan Baker (center) was pinned her rank by her parents.
After the pinning, the Cadets then received their first salute from a current or former enlisted person. After receiving the salute the Cadet then gives the enlisted person a silver dollar:
2LT Christian Goldbach receives his first salute from his brother, Army Staff Sergeant Marcus Goldbach.2LT John Drohman (left) receives his first salute from retired Navy Chief Warrant Officer 3 Thomas Clark.2LT Liam Hewey receives his first salute from his father retired Air Force Master Sergeant Robert Hewey.
Congratulations to the following Cadets for commissioning as officers into the U.S. Army:
