Battalion Stories

Members of VMI’s Army ROTC Ranger Challenge and Combat Shooting Team recently attended the 2023 College Clash Shoot Out competition hosted by the Virginia National Guard’s Marksmanship Training Unit, with four cadets nabbing top marks.

Hayden Rose ’26, a computer science major at Virginia Military Institute, used the skills he learned as a VMI emergency medical technician (EMT) to save a woman’s life recently while embedded with the 91st cyber brigade for a military activity at Camp Pendleton.

Anna Yemelianova ’25, an international studies major at Virginia Military Institute, has been named a fellow in the Iris Burton Bulls Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) Fellowship Program.

Have you ever wondered what a mix of Army ROTC and a varsity sport would be? You’d get the Army ROTC Ranger Challenge team, which is a club at Virginia Military Institute.

Approximately 170 Virginia Military Institute cadets, commissioned into the armed services in Cameron Hall Monday, May 15 in the annual Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) Joint Commissioning Ceremony. The historic day marked the first time VMI cadets were sworn in to all six branches.

Team members of Ranger Challenge, the “varsity sport” of the program at Virginia Military Institute, placed fifth, winning a Sandhurst Medallion for the top five overall teams out of 48 teams in the annual Sandhurst Military Skills Competition at the U.S. Military Academy (USMA) at West Point.

Kaylee Brennan ’23, an English major at Virginia Military Institute, did independent field work to create a guide for cadets who plan on attending law school after they graduate. It’s to be used as a resource for cadets on how to prepare and apply to law school.

When Erik Gottmann ’25, a cadet at Virginia Military Institute boarded a flight to Austria for a ski trip with his family over winter furlough, he had no way of knowing he and his brothers would be an essential part of a Christmas miracle.

CDQC is a 6-week course, known by many as one of the most challenging and selective qualifications in the United States military. On top of being physically and academically demanding, combat divers are required to work extremely well as members of a team and under high pressure situations.

Cadets conquered many challenges on and off post during 2022 spring field training exercises (FTX).

Since November, several cadets have been working toward the German Armed Forced Proficiency Badge (GAFPB), a decoration which requires the completion of six physical and military events.

Eight cadets from VMI, two from each class, traveled to Charleston and competed against the Citadel’s team. A series of challenging events and exercises, the competition was designed to foster camaraderie and showcase the best of each institution.

As he looks ahead to completing his time at VMI, Kim hopes future cadets remember to focus on what is important and “find that balance between academics, physical fitness, and free time.”

Her senior year of high school, Claire Lee ’22 attended an open house to see what post was like, and as she put it, “The parade really got me. I fell in love with the whole system of VMI: the brotherhood, the discipline people are required to learn, the structure.”