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Saint Anselm ROTC cadets participated in a Winter Field Training Exercise with the rest of the \u201cWildcat\u201d Battalion at the end of January.\u00a0 Cadets from several colleges in New Hampshire gathered at the National Guard facility in Strafford to be trained and evaluated on important skills for their military careers.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe conducted training in an active blizzard on Saturday, which was interesting,\u201d recalled Cameron Barbone, an ROTC cadet and Saint Anselm junior criminal justice major from Windham, NH.<\/span><\/p>\n ROTC is the Army\u2019s Reserve Officer Training Corps, which allows college students to train for a career in the Army, the Army Reserve, or the Army National Guard after they graduate.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Saint Anselm senior criminal justice and Spanish double major, Zachary Roughan of Sturbridge, MA, who is also the Charlie Company executive officer says the weather was a challenge for a lot of the cadets.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cA lot of people were definitely figuring out whether this was something they wanted to do,\u201d Roughan said.\u00a0 \u201cI like this phrase: \u2018everyone wants to be in the army until it\u2019s time to do army things.\u2019 Everyone wants to wear a uniform.\u00a0 Everyone wants to be a soldier.\u00a0 Everyone wants to serve their country until it\u2019s not comfortable or ideal weather or whatever challenge you\u2019re doing.\u00a0 Everyone wants to do it until those things come up.\u00a0 I find that very funny.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Most of the training involved infantry skills such as conducting attacks, raids, ambushes, and reconnaissance.\u00a0 Some cadets would be outside in the cold, while others were inside planning.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cBasically, you learn all of the infantry tactics when you are in ROTC to best prepare you for whatever job you end up getting,\u201d Roughan said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m commissioning as an infantry officer so that\u2019s like right up my alley.\u00a0 I love that stuff.\u00a0 I can\u2019t get enough of it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n This training is particularly important for cadets in their junior year, as they are preparing for their Advanced Camp training this summer in Kentucky.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt was for all of the juniors; we were getting them prepared because they have one more field training exercise before they go to Fort Knox this summer to train,\u201d Roughan said.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAdvanced Camp is the cumulative event for all ROTC students,\u201d Barbone explained.\u00a0 \u201cIt takes place in the summer between a cadet\u2019s junior and senior years.\u00a0 Cadets get evaluated on their leadership, which determines their future in the United States Army and is a mandatory training event in order to commission.<\/span><\/p>\n Another Saint Anselm junior cadet, Katherine Macaluso, a psychology major from Malverne, NY thought training in the intense storm was challenging, but a good experience.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen being out in the woods all day through a blizzard, many cadets were stuck laying or assaulting through the snow for almost up to an hour,\u201d Macaluso said.\u00a0 \u201cIt takes a certain mindset to stay focused and turned on for training.\u00a0 I think overall, cadets pushed through the challenges and learned a lot throughout the weekend to get optimal training.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Macaluso also appreciated working with the other cadets in her grade.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt was our first time all together and training, so it was interesting to see how everyone would get along,\u201d Macaluso said.<\/span><\/p>\n Getting to know other people with a shared interest in a military career is something many cadets value.\u00a0 Saint Anselm\u2019s ROTC is part of the Wildcat Battalion, which is based out of UNH, and specifically the Charlie Company, which also includes cadets from SNHU, Franklin-Pierce, Plymouth State, and Colby-Sawyer.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cMy favorite part about ROTC is meeting new people, challenging myself physically and mentally and seeing my progress and development over the course of four years,\u201d Saint Anselm senior and Wildcat Battalion Public Affairs Officer from Marshfield, MA Caitlin Morgan said.<\/span><\/p>\n The severe weather changed plans quite a bit.\u00a0 The training was supposed to take place at Fort Devens in Massachusetts, with some cadets riding a helicopter from Strafford to Devens and being driven back shortly after landing.\u00a0 Roughan, who was supposed to drive to Devens, heard about the situation from a phone call.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhat ended up happening was that due to weather, because obviously there was a blizzard there and all across New England, Fort Devens closed,\u201d Roughan said.\u00a0 \u201cSo, after we had landed the birds there, we found out we were tasked with bringing everyone back to New Hampshire and continuing the training at another national guard facility.\u00a0 We had to make a decision on that within minutes.\u00a0 There\u2019s a lot of logistics that goes into that. There\u2019s a lot of planning, and then there\u2019s transportation.\u00a0 [It\u2019s] not ideal.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Students who wish to learn more about ROTC are invited to check out their Instagram page, or join cadets for their regular physical training Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cPeople are more than welcome to come check those [training sessions] out, spend some time with us, spend some time talking with the guys and girls,\u201d Roughan said.\u00a0 \u201cWe do trainings on Fridays, which people are welcome to come take a look at and meet our cadre.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n