ROTC

The St. Mary’s University Army Reserve Officer Training Corps program, established in 1932, has commissioned 1,773 officers (as of Spring 2024) for our Army. The program has a long timeline of excellence and continues to be a training ground for tomorrow’s leaders.

Prior to the National Defense Act of 1916, military training occurred primarily at land grant institutions established by the Morrill Act of 1862. The Morrill Act stipulated that each land-grant institution would provide instruction in military tactics as part of its engineering and agriculture curriculum. When the Civil War ended in 1865, the benefits of the Morrill Act were extended to former Confederate States of America, including Texas, thus allowing for the creation of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, now Texas A&M University, in 1876. From 1876 until World War I, formal military instruction was generally only available at the major state-funded institutions of Texas (Texas A&M and the University of Texas), and even at those schools, it was not formalized under U.S. Army control until 1916.

The National Defense Act of 1916 formalized the establishment of Reserve Officers Training Corps programs at civilian colleges and universities throughout the U.S. Immediately following the NDA and in the feverish effort to produce men and materiel for the war effort in Europe, the War Department selected 28 Texas colleges and universities to participate in the Students Army Training Corps (SATC) program. Approved by Congress on Aug. 31, 1918, the SATC program was an agreement between the U.S. Department of War and American educators to prevent the U.S. Department of War’s conscription efforts from further depleting the number of 18-year-old males entering universities in the fall of 1918.

The only SATC program available in San Antonio was at the West Texas Military Academy, the predecessor to the Texas Military Institute. The SATC program was short-lived and disbanded upon signing of the armistice that ended World War I. The SATC program was again replaced with ROTC, yet formal college-level military instruction would not be available in San Antonio for another 14 years.

In 1932, St. Mary’s University established a “Section 55-c unit” of ROTC. The National Defense Act of 1916, as amended in 1921, allowed the Secretary of War (predecessor to the Secretary of the Army) to support military instruction at civilian colleges and universities where no formal ROTC unit existed. Though these “55-c units” were not formal ROTC programs, they were still supported by the U.S. Department of War with detailed officers, enlisted soldiers, and equipment to conduct proper military training.

The U.S. Army detailed 1st Lt. William E. Cox to serve as the first professor of military science and tactics at St. Mary’s. The 55-c unit was formally dedicated on March 20, 1932 on the University’s baseball field and commissioned its first reserve officer, A. Ransome Marlowe, on Dec. 5, 1932. Between 1932 and 1942, St. Mary’s commissioned just 39 officers. One of these graduates, Cadet Joseph J. Cody Jr., class of 1941, would become the first St. Mary’s University Army ROTC graduate to achieve the rank of general officer and another, Cadet Rodolfo Vargas, class of 1942, would be the first graduate killed in WWII. Due to World War II, the St. Mary’s University Army ROTC program was closed in 1942, but many St. Mary’s graduates, both former cadets and civilian students, served in World War II.

In 1947, the Marianist Brothers of St. Mary’s petitioned the U.S. Army for the formation of a formal Army ROTC program to “educate the whole man. The totality of this intellectual goal demands that we treat with man’s many needs: the practical as well as the theoretical, the worldly as well as the spiritual, the body as well as the mind. Mens sana in corpore sano.” (5 May, 1969, speech given by The Very Reverend Louis J. Blume, S.M., President, St. Mary’s University.) On April 25, 1947, the ROTC program was re-established as a Field Artillery program by General Order #91 under the Professor of Military Science, Col. Bryan Milburn. From its reopening, St. Mary’s required all male students to participate in ROTC instruction for their first two years of school. Since the GI Bill made college attendance feasible for returning veterans, the student population of St. Mary’s, and thus the ROTC program, grew.

During the Vietnam War, students resisted the requirement to join ROTC and petitioned the University leadership to reduce the requirement. On May 5, 1969, the President of St. Mary’s University, Rev. Louis J. Blume, reduced the ROTC requirement for male students to one year beginning in fall 1969. In 1971, he eliminated the requirement altogether and ROTC enrollment dropped to its lowest levels since 1942.

In the fall of 1972, the U.S. Congress opened all ROTC programs to female students. Since female cadets could not commission into the Field Artillery at the time, the St. Mary’s ROTC program began offering the General Military Science program in 1975 in order to commission officers, including women, into branches other than Field Artillery. The first female cadet battalion commander in the nation was Cadet Karen Pospisil, the St. Mary’s University Battalion Commander in 1976.

In addition to enrolling women, St. Mary’s Army ROTC grew with the establishment of a cross-enrollment agreement with the University of Texas at San Antonio on May 20, 1975. As the UTSA program grew, it achieved Extension Center status on Nov. 13, 1979, and it remained a part of the St. Mary’s program until Jun. 14, 1982, when it earned Host Program status.

From 1982 to 1991, there were three ROTC host programs in San Antonio — St. Mary’s, UTSA, and Trinity University. With the downsizing of the military following the Gulf War and the collapse of the Soviet Union, the U.S. Army decided to close 50 ROTC programs nationwide, including the program at Trinity University in 1991. With the Trinity program’s closure, St. Mary’s University established ROTC cross-enrollment agreements with both Trinity University and the University of the Incarnate Word, so that those students could continue to pursue army officer commissions through St. Mary’s.

In 2009, St. Mary’s established a cross-enrollment agreement with the newly formed Texas A&M University at San Antonio (TAMUSA). St. Mary’s commissioned six officers through TAMUSA between 2009 and 2014. On Aug. 28, 2014, the TAMUSA ROTC program became part of the UTSA ROTC program.

Today, the St. Mary’s University Army ROTC program enrolls cadets from affiliate programs at St. Philip’s College, Trinity University, and Our Lady of the Lake University, a partner program at the University of the Incarnate Word, and the host program at St. Mary’s University.

For most ROTC students, called cadets, it takes a total of four years to complete ROTC. During the Basic Course, the first two years of ROTC, cadets tackle subjects like military history, first aid and customs of the Army. There is a constant emphasis on leadership development. While enrolled in the Basic Course, cadets normally do not have to make a commitment to serve in the Army. The final two years of ROTC, called the Advanced Course, is the first point at which most cadets must make a commitment to serve.

In both the Basic and Advanced Course, uniforms, textbooks and all required items of equipment are furnished at no extra cost. Additionally, there are merit-based scholarships available. These scholarships can go a long way towards financing the cost of getting a college education.

For students who did not take ROTC during their first two years of college, a compressed version of the Basic Course is available each summer. This 31-day training session, called Basic Camp, gives students a condensed version of the subjects normally taught on campus during the first two years of ROTC. While in attendance at Basic Camp, students receive a salary, the full cost of their housing, transportation and meals provided by the Army.

It is important to note that students have no obligation to serve in the Army just because they decide to attend Basic Camp. However, successful completion of Basic Camp does give students the skills and credentials necessary for enrollment in the Advanced Course.

To ensure that they become well-rounded leaders, cadets in the Advanced Course study subjects as diverse as math reasoning and human behavior. Practical experience at supervising others is gained at weekly training sessions called Leadership Labs. They gain insight into the multi-faceted challenges of leadership through a detailed study of military history and prepare themselves for the future with courses in computer literacy.

Pulling together all the elements they’ve learned, cadets attend the Advanced Camp, for a 32-day summer session between their junior and senior years. The training is tough and the hours are long at Advanced Camp but, with its completion, cadets move ever closer to their goal of becoming Army officers.

The reward for all the hard work comes on graduation day – when cadets leave their alma mater as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army. Many of these newly commissioned officers will immediately begin service in the Army. Others will fulfill their military obligation as citizen-soldiers, through service in the Army National Guard or the Army Reserve.

Through cross-enrollment agreements, students in the following San Antonio Area colleges and universities can participate fully in the St. Mary’s ROTC program.

University of the Incarnate Word
Our Lady of the Lake University
Trinity University
San Antonio College
St. Phillip’s College

These cross-enrollment agreements allow the benefits of the ROTC curriculum and scholarship opportunities to be extended to students of these institutions. Students from colleges that are members of the Alamo Colleges system generally may take an introductory ROTC course free of charge. These students are also encouraged to seek ROTC scholarships as an additional way to afford tuition in one of the San Antonio universities offering ROTC through St. Mary’s University.

A select group of cadets representing St. Mary’s University ROTC Military Science Department participate in various campus and community ceremonies. This group has even participated in several San Antonio Spurs’ games.

Cadets field athletic teams that compete against other University students in a wide variety of sports.

This is an outdoor-oriented unit for those students looking for extra military and physical training. They meet on campus once a week and hold a few one-day field training exercises using National Guard and Reserve facilities.

Several social events are held throughout the school year including a Military Ball, cadet parties, and recreational activities.