F a l l f i e l d t r a i n i n g e x e r c i s e

T A B L E O F

C O N T E N T S

2. Word from the PMS

3. Word from the SMI

4. Ranger Challenge

5. Fall FTX

6. Homecoming

7. Guest Speakers

8. Safety

R a n g e r C h a l l e n g e 2 0 1 1

DECEMBER

By Cadet Monica Rosario

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

SAVE THE DATE

December Commission-

ing (December 16th)

December Graduation

(December 17th)

Big Apple Classic tour-

nament NYC

(December 4th)

By: Cadet Monica Rosario

S P E A C I A L

I N T R E S T

Trojan Warrior Battal-

ion’s Army ROTC Pro-

gram offers significant

benefits, including guar-

anteed job, paid- for

schooling, and invalu-

able experiences.

VSU’s Trojan Warrior

Battalions contact infor-

mation is posted on the

last page.

three out of five correctly

plotted points in order to pass.

MSIII’s were faced with the

challenge of going out by

themselves, while MSI’s and

MSII’s were grouped with

a high speed MSIV to per-

fect skills in order to go

out by themselves soon.

The purpose of the

individual missions on the

FLRC course are not to

only accomplish the mis-

sion at hand, but more to

learn about your team

work and ability to lead

others in the right direction in

order to accomplish the mis-

sion at hand. The FLRC

course was an enjoyable one

for the cadets to exercise their

leadership and team building

skills.

CONTINUE PAGE .4...

On November 4th

through the 6th the Trojan

Warrior Battalion participated

in the annual Fall FTX. This

year it was at Fort Pickett,

VA. Cadets conducted

training events such as

Day and Night Land Navi-

gation, FLRC, Qualifying

on M16, and Rappel

Tower. Land navigation is

an essential skill needed

not only in life but espe-

cially important for the

Leadership Development

Assessment Course

(LDAC). The Trojan Warrior

Battalion participated in day

and night land navigation on

the “Land Nav South” course

at Fort Pickett, Virginia. Each

cadet gets a certain set of

points that they must find

within an allotted time. For

day land navigation cadets

were assigned eight points to

find within five hours. They

must find five out of eight

correctly plotted points in

order to pass. For night land

navigation, cadets are as-

signed five points that they

must find within three and a

half hours. They must find

ABOVE: TROJAN WARRIOR BATTALION

AFTER FINISHING RAPPEL TOWER.

On October 21st

through the 23rd the Trojan

Warrior Battalion’s Ranger

Challenge Team competed in

the annual 4th Brigade’s

Ranger Challenge Competi-

tion 2011 at Fort Pickett, Vir-

ginia. The team was captained

by Cadet Stephen Remis, a

junior from Richmond, Vir-

ginia. "They were prepared

and motivated. They repre-

sented VSU and the ROTC

program very well," said

Master Sgt. Joseph Knight,

Senior Military Instructor

with the Trojan Warrior

CONTINUE PAGE 4…. ABOVE: CADET BROWN RECEIVES AN

AWARD FOR RANGER CHALLENGE 2011.

2

P a g e 2 D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

Happy Holidays to Virginia State University, friends, family, staff, Alumni and supporters of the Trojan War-

rior Battalion! The battalion has been so busy this semester we decided to issue an additional newsletter to showcase

the many great events since the Fall Newsletter was published just prior to Homecoming 2011.

The battalion was honored to have many guest speakers provide some insight to the military life through ques-

tion and answer forums this fall. Brigadier General Gwen Bingham, the Quartermaster General of the United States

Army, administered the contracting oath to some of our MS IIIs this fall and then talked about her experiences in the

military with the cadets during our Lab on November 2, 2011.

Additionally, Colonel Rodney Edge, Garrison Commander Fort Lee, VA, spoke to the cadets about the impor-

tance of mentorship, life after college and life in the military.

We had the honor also to welcome COL (Ret) Porcher L. Taylor, Jr., Ph.D, to our battalion so he could share

his experience and knowledge of military life with the Cadets. Colonel Taylor is a retired US Army Officer, and a Vet-

eran of WWII, Korea and Vietnam. He earned a Doctorate degree from the University of South Carolina. He is a life-

time member of the Tuskegee Airmen and the Triple Nickels (555th Parachute Infantry) Associations. His words humbled us

all and provided valuable insight to military service and its demands.

The Trojan Warrior Battalion continued to train during our Fall FTX at Fort Pickett, VA. The Cadets got an

opportunity to receive rappel tower training from Virginia National Guard Rappel Masters, conduct day and night land

navigation, and weapons familiarization on the small arms range. Cadets also completed monthly Army Physical Fit-

ness Tests and participated in university events and community events.

One of our Cadets, Brittany Meredith distinguished herself during a local church service by speaking to the

congregation of the Zion Baptist Church and introducing BG Bingham who addressed the church members as part of

the church’s annual Military Appreciation Day November 20, 2011.

All in all a fantastic and productive semester to be capped off with our December 16, 2011 commissioning

ceremony where we will commission the following Cadets, Deshauna Barber, Porsche Leslie, Christopher Robins and

Terrell Vereen. These soon to be Second Lieutenants will also participate in the VSU commencement ceremony on

December 17, 2011.

Have a safe and enjoyable Holiday season and meet us all on “high ground” next semester!

Daniel M. Maloney

LTC, LG

Chair, Military Science Department

Virginia State University

W o r d s f r o m P M S

3

Happy Holidays to all the Trojan Warriors and their respective families!

I want to thank all of you for your hard work this semester. Additionally a big “Thanks” goes out to the Color

Guard Teams for their support to Union Baptist Church and Shiloh Baptist for their Veterans Day programs.

I want to thank the CASCOM & Fort Lee CSM Jenkins for his recognition of the Cadets for Veterans Day, he

stated that they could have been anywhere but they decided to do this event. He also gave them some good old fashion

Non Commission Officer Professional Development (NCOPD) on how a newly Commissioned Lieutenant should come

into his or her unit and what to expect. CSM Jenkins also gave them a history lession on the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in

Korea, which they were amazed by, he continued by given them insight on how he was impressed with them on their per-

formance on Veterans Day.

Also, congratulations to the Cadets that will get commissioned in December, you have a tough job ahead of you,

but you will do fine just remember your training and never be afraid to make a mistake. When I was a Platoon Sergeant, I

always told my Platoon Leader that I would take care of him by making sure he knew everything he needed to know so

trust in your Platoon Sergeant he won’t fail you.

The time is drawing near for the juniors to get even more focused on preparing for the Leadership Development

Assessment Course (LDAC). Take time to sharpen your skills on Land Navigation, Patrolling, OPORD, and many other

tasks needed to make you successful at camp. You don’t need any distracters hindering you from training; stay focused,

motivated and you will do fine. Remember, make an impact right away as the PMS and I will start considering who to

send to LDAC, based on performance, early in the spring semester with our final list complete around April 2012.

Take this opportunity during the break to relax and prepare to focus on the remainder of the year; I am already

looking forward to next semester!

Trojan Warriors enjoy your Holidays be safe and I will see you when you return.

Cadet White and Cadet Jennings receives a coin from the CASCOM& Fort Lee CSM Jenkins

Senior Military Instructor

MSG JOSEPH KNIGHT

P a g e 3

December 2011

W o r d s f r o m s m i

4

P a g e 3

Fall FTX continued

December 2011

Battalion, and

coach of the team. The Ranger Chal-

lenge Competition

is held among 300

universities nation-

wide, fielding

teams to compete

in a series of chal-

lenging events. The

name and spirit for the com-

petition are derived from

the U.S. Army Ranger

School at Fort Benning, Ga.

Training for the event in-

cludes rigorous physical

fitness workouts, informa-

tion classes on various ele-

ments of light infantry tac-

tics, and a field training

exercise, where rifle marks-

manship, rope bridge, land

navigation, a 10-kilometer

road march and

many other skills are

tested. Other team

members included

Cadet Brown, Cadet Everett, Cadet Ed-monds, Cadet Eason, Cadet Strick-

land, Cadet Wills

Cadet Peterson, and Cadet

Rasberry. Congratulations

Ranger Challenge on a job

well done!

Ranger Challenge

Continued

The MSIV’s had the opportunity to go to the

qualification range to work on their marksmanship skills

just before going off to the “Big Army.” The qualification

range consisted of zeroing and qualifying. This was a very

important skill that the cadets enjoyed. The trainers edu-

cated them on marksmanship in the military.

Rappel Tower- where the cadets attended a class

by certified rappel masters who taught the cadets every-

thing there is to know about all the safety needed to com-

plete the task at hand, rappeling. For some, this was their

first time, and for others they were afraid of heights. The

point of this obstacle every year is to make sure cadets are

challenged with facing their fears and accomplishing goals

and moving forward. With all these activities completed

by the Battalion, they were able to come back after one

long weekend a different leader and more ready for the

next step in life, LDAC.

ABOVE: LTC Maloney gives

cadets Certificates of Ranger

Challenge Competition

“A positive

attitude takes

you half the

distance.”

-General

Bingham

LEFT: Cadets on

the Range

BELOW: RANGER CHALLENGE

AWARDS CEREMONY

ABOVE: TROJAN WARRIOR BATTALION

AFTER FINISHING RAPPEL TOWER.

5

F a l l F T X

C o n t i n u e d

P a g e 5 D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

6

H O M E C O M I N G C E L E B R A T I O N S 2 0 1 1

P a g e 6 D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

Pictures taken by Cadet VELAZQUEZ

By: Cadet Monica Rosario

G O T R O J A N S ! ! !

“Rain, Rain Go AWAY

come again another day!” Rain

did NOT stop the Trojan 2011

Homecoming activities this year.

Although the rain may have

stopped some, it did not stop the

VSU campus from celebrating

Homecoming with style this

year! The Cadets were highly

involved with homecoming,

from parades, to color guards,

and even Mr. and Ms. ROTC,

Cadet Kirby & Cadet Friend.

Homecoming 2011 brought a lot

of exciting events to the campus

of Virginia State University this

past October. Hundreds of visitors

came to the campus. Eight days

were jammed packed with events

for students, alumni, families, and

friends. Beating the Virginia Union

Panthers 39 to 14 made homecom-

ing a perfect ending!

Congratulations to our very own

Cadet Rosario and Cadet Chip-

chase for representing the Trojan

Warrior Battalion in all the Home-

coming activities as the current Mr

& Miss Virginia State University

(2nd runner up’s) Congratulations

Virginia State TROJANS! Won-

derful Homecoming memories! ABOVE: TROJAN WARRIOR BATTALION

LEADING THE HOMECOMING PARADE.

7

P a g e 7 D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

Brigadier General

Gwen Bingham is a native of

Troy, Alabama. She graduated

from Army ROTC as a Distin-

guished Military Graduate from

the University of Alabama in

August 1981, with a Bachelor of

Science degree in General Busi-

ness Management. She was

commissioned a Second Lieu-

tenant in the Quartermaster

Corps. BG Bingham has a Mas-

ter’s degree in Administration

from Central Michigan Univer-

sity and a Masters degree in

National Security Strategy

and Resources from the

National Defense Univer-

sity. On November 2nd

2011, she graciously visited

the Trojan warrior battalion

to speak on a number of

different topics. Thank you

General Bingham for such

inspirational words of wis-

dom and experience!

G e n e r a l B i n g h a m ’ s V i s i t

Above: Brigadier General Gwen

Bingham

he spoke on touchy subjects that often

go unspoken; race, gender issues, and

the nature of society in the military.

“Mentors are vital and important in

ones career” he said. Additionally he

spoke about how important it is to

have a mentor while offering that he

would be anyone's mentor, even all at

once. The cadets were able to relate to

Colonel Edge on many levels, never a

dull moment in the entire visit. Thank

You Colonel Edge for you inspira-

tional and motivational words!

Colonel Rodney D. Edge is a na-

tive of Washington, DC. He attended

Northwest Missouri State University; sub-

sequently joined the Reserve Officer

Training Corps (ROTC) program, gradu-

ated and received a commission as a Sec-

ond Lieutenant in the US Army. He later

attended and graduated from the US Army

Quartermaster Basic Course in 1985. On

November 2nd, 2011, Colonel Edge came

by the Trojan Warrior Battalion and spoke

about numerous topics. The reality of life

after college and in the U. S. Army. Colo-

nel Edge made a major impact on the life

of each cadet on this day by making sure

C o l o n e l E d g e V i s i t

ABOVE: Colonel Rodney D. Edge

“My Audio

must match

My video.”

-General

Bingham

8

P a g e 8 D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

faster. We are ready to start off

2012 with our heads held high

while making it a prosperous se-

mester for everyone. It has been a

jam- packed semester filled with

continues success, and with the

New Year we hope to continue the

legacy of the Trojan Warrior Battal-

ion’s successful school year. On

behalf of Dr. Keith T. Miller, Presi-

dent of Virginia State University,

and the Trojan Family, we would

like to take an opportunity to wish

everyone a very happy holiday and

wonderful New Year!

H a p p y H o l i d a y s F r o m T r o j a n W a r r i o r

B a t t a l i o n ! !

Supporters, Families,

Friends, Alumni, and Trojan Warri-

ors, we hope 2011 has been a very

good and successful year for all of

you. We are grateful for the very

special memories of the past semes-

ter. Fall 2011, has gone on to be-

come a very successful one. We

accomplished a fall FTX, PT test

every month, Land Navigation

every month, Squad STX training

every week, along with a multitude

of other cadet duties. As we move

at a fast progressive pace, next se-

mester will be even tougher and

S a f e t y

With the Holiday Season

upon us, we should all take a minute

to think about safety. We would like

to remind you and friends to be es-

pecially conscientious about your

surroundings, not only on campus,

but also when visiting out of town,

shopping malls, friends and family.

Personal safety

Unfortunately, criminal ac-

tivity, including assault, robbery,

and burglary, are things statisti-

cally increase during that time of

year. Here are a few simple tips to

help protect you and your loved

ones.

Stop, look, listen!

Park in a well- lit area

Always take/ tell a battle

buddy where your going

Have your keys ready

Don’t go alone

Hold on to your money (cash)

Shopping with children?

If you are out for the evening:

Turn on lights and/ or radio

Extra cautious about locking

doors/ windows

If traveling:

Do car maintenance

before travel

Make a plan!

Overall, stay safe!

9

Special Interest

Alumni, Friends, Faculty, & staff of VSU Army R.O.T.C. We are happy to welcome our

new column, “Messages From the Field.” We want to include your news in the alumni section,

where names of alumni are listed. Write to us about your recent location, awards, marriages, births

and other noteworthy accomplishments or changes. Be sure to include your graduation year and

contact information. “OLD” photographs are particularly interesting. If you have any, please email

them to LTC Dan Maloney at Dmaloney@vsu.edu Photographs are much appreciated and go a long

way to enhance our communication.

Cadet Rosario

Public Affairs Officer

Editor’s Corner

Past events

*Ranger Challenge (October 21st – 23rd)*

*Homecoming Parade & Game (October 29th)

*Physical Fitness APFT Test (November 2nd)

*Fall FTX (November 4th – 6th)

Up & Coming Trojan Warrior Battalion Training events

*Finals (December 5th – December 10th)

*Christmas Break (December 12th – January 17th)

*December Commissioning (December 16th)

*Winter Graduation (December 17th)

*First day of Spring semester (January 17th)

Contact information: Virginia State University Army ROTC

Business Address:

JB Bolling Building

Carter G. Wilson Avenue,

Petersburg, VA 23806

Office: (804) 524 5537

Fax: (804) 524 5844

Email: DMaloney@vsu.edu

Website: www.vsu.edu

Enrolment & Scholarship opportunities

Kimberly S. Miller

Recruiting Operations Officer

(804) 524 5537 Office

(804) 524 5844 Fax

Email: KSMiller@vsu.edu

The Virginia State University Trojan Warrior

Battalion Reserve Officers’ Training Corps

(ROTC) Program is an award-winning, leader-

producing department that supplies future leaders

to the United States Army, community and busi-

ness world.

RIGHT: VSU

ROTC LOGO

created by

Cadet

Dominic

Brown

Congratulations Cadet Robinson!

Left & Right: Cadet Robinson receives gift

on the behalf of his family, The TWB!

Cadet Robinson had a healthy baby boy

November 5th 2011!

December 2011 P a g e 9