by Candice Mack
Savannah State University is expected to make history this May by producing its largest number of graduates. The Savannah State NROTC unit will be making a little history of its own by commissioning a record number of officers. On May 4th 2013, the unit is expected to commission nine officers into the United States Navy and Marine Corps., making this the largest number of officers to graduate from the program in one semester in its forty-two year history.
Since its establishment in 1971, this university’s Naval ROTC program, despite its small size, has produced a disproportionate amount of successful, high ranking officers in the navy and marine corps. Most notable, are Lieutenant General Walter E. Gaskin and Captain (Retired) Donnie L. Cochran. Walter Gaskin is the highest ranking African in the Marine Corps and currently serves as the Deputy Chairman of the NATO Military Committee in Brussels, Belgium. Cochran was the first African American to fly with the United States Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, otherwise known as the Blue Angels; his blue jet plane is displayed across the street from the NROTC McGlockton building on campus. Captain Clark T. Price, current commanding officer of the unit, says, “This program has always been less about the numbers and more about the quality of the officers that we produce. I am proud of all of our graduates and am very proud to be a part of this momentous occasion.”
Midshipmen 1st Class Mary Graf is a senior Political Science major and serves as the midshipmen executive officer of the company. She has been accepted into the aviation community of the Navy and will be attending flight school after graduation. “I always thought I would do great things but I never imagined that I would one day be contributing to history!” says Graf. “This program has given me the opportunity to pursue my goal of becoming a pilot in the United States Navy.”
Midshipmen 1st Class Meatrice Starr is a senior Homeland Security Major and will be commissioned as a 2nd Lietenant in the Marine Corps. “I joined the NROTC program in 2009 as a freshman along with 45 others wanting to become officers,” explains Starr. “This program is not easy so I am really proud of all of us for hanging in there and I look forward to joining them all in the fleet.”
The Savannah State University NROTC program is expected to commission six ensigns into the United States Navy and three 2nd lieutenants in the United States Marine Corps.