ROTC,AcademicFocus

Major George A. Joulwani United S@tes Army

POLITICAL science credit givenfor Reserve Ollieers’ Training

“ corps (ROTC) COUISe5?ROTC CrOS8-listed under another discipline? Non-ROTC students enrolling in militaryscience eleeses? Military oSicers lec-turing in other department? Ofkerevoluntarily teaching at night in an off-eampus “Free Univerait#’ with halfthe participants members of the Stu-dente for a Democratic Society? ~tsounds abaurd if one believes mediareports that al LROTC unite, particu-

JIeeery1971

larly those in large urban areea, areunder am are being downgraded,or are struggling for their very exiet-ence. ActnalIy, many university ArmyROTC programs are thriving+venin the turbulent milieu of large metro-politan areaa. One such program existeat Loyola University in Chicago.

05icer education began at Loyola in19Q and, for nearly 20 years, theuniversity offered a general militaryscience curriculum patterned aftereither the standard Track A or the

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modified Track B course outline. Butbeginning with schaol year 196S-69,Loyola University, along with 10 othernniversitiee nationwide, instituted anew developmental curriculum calledTrack C. .

Mt!rshonCommitteeThis new curriculum option, how-

ever, did not just materialize in 1968.And, most importantly, it was not areaction to the diseidenta who, in 1968,were calling for the abolishment ofROTC on college campuees. Rather,Track C is the product of civilian andmilitary educatore working togetherto deeign a curriculum which bestutilizes the ROTC students’ time. Thiegroup was under the direction of theMershon Center for Education in Na-tional Security, and held its first con-ference in June 1960 at Ohio StateUniversity, Columbus. The tone ofthe conference was eet by the remarksof John U. Monro, Dean of HarvardCollege, Cambridge, Maesaehueetta, ina paper entitled “Strengthening theROTC Curriculum.” lIe said:

. . . the colleges’ oti programe aregetting at$ffer, an-d better, arui wemet look for the soft 8pot8 in ROTC,and 8hn”nk them out . . . we mustetm”ve to develop acao%miccourasa tkatare neefwl to both eids8.

To “ehrink out” the soft apota inROTC, a eecond meeting of the Mer-

Major George A. Jeidwan ia a etu-dent at the US Army Command andGeneral Staff CoUege. A 1961 graduateof the US Militaw Acmf.emg, he holdsa Maater’s &gree in Pplitictd Sciencefrom Louoia Univerwtg i?t Chicago.Hie 8ervice includes dwtu with the 9dInfant?y Dkieion in Germung, withthe let Infantr# Division in Viet?mm,and m Ae80ehte Profee80r of MilituryScience of Lo?Iokz’8 Reeerve @j%x3r8’Training (%rpa program.

ahon Committee wee held in 1964. Thismeeting resulted in a report whichoutlined a dramatic new direction forthe ROTC curriculum. It was the com-mittee’s belief that there was:

. . . a need for the devetapment of anROTC curridum which ia &eigtwdtO be ebd.hging tO the S-t ad re-8tive to credit requirmwnte of cot-legea and univereitiea and the milita~reqcbhm.snte of the armed aervicee,

Track C CeursesThe concept finally agreed upon was

called Track C. Track C coneiete of apreprofeeeional divieion during thefreshman and sophomore yeara andprofessional training during the jun-ior and senior years of college. TrackC stresses bread career and profes-sional development.

At I.,oyola, for example, two ee-meeters of ‘World I&litary History”for freshmen, and “Foundation ofNational Power” and “National Se-curity Probleme” for sophomores, re-place the teebnical military coureeesuch as mapreadlng and aeeembly anddisassembly of weapons. Furthermore,the Track C courses give the studentan ineight into the rationale behindthe military profeeeion, its hletoriealperspective, and the military functionin a democratic political system.

In addition, Track C instructor atLoyola have a minimum of a Maeter’s -degree in @her bietory or politicalecience. Wit$ these aqademic creden-tials, not only does the military serv-ice conform’ to the etandarde of theaemlemic community, but it also en-hances the quality of edueation for theROTC student, better utiliaea hteavailable time, and expands his over-all college education. But there arealeo bonus e$ecta wtilch have madeROTC at I.oyola a truly viable aca-demic curriculum.

MiliteryRevleu

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One bonus effect has been the cross- Our purpose involves more thanlisting of both sophomore courses merely being responsive to the criti-under political science. At a ~ime when ciem thatthe preeent curricula lackacademic credit is ~lng qucationed for challenge and are too vocati”ondyROTC courses at other univereities, oriented. Rather, we intend the basicthe Loyoki student not only fultills Me conraee of the new cam”cu.lum be eoROTC requirement, but also receives d+w.igrwdthntthere will be no quee-

A new program introduced in the current e&oo7 year in come eollegee dlowe ROTCradete to take more academic subjecte applicable to a military rarcer

academic credit toward Me politicalecierma course requirement. Most im-portantly, the crm~-listing was accom-plished at the request of the chairmanof the Political Science Departmentbecause he felt the eoureee added tohis departman~e offeringe.

Thie development ie in line with theaims of the former Army Chief ofStaff, Harold IL Johnson. In a 1967letter to institutions participating inthe Track C experiment, General John-eon stated:

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tionof their being accor&d academiccredit on a por wt”th other com%es of-fered by the indtutkm, and fullti up-plicabk in ang of its degree programa.

Another bonue effect of cross-listinghae been the enrolhnent of non-ROTCstudents. Tide mix of students pro-videe for interesting and challengingcleaeroom lectures. In f ac~ the eW,orof the student newspaper Plus mem-bers of the Studente for a DemocraticSociety eat in the same classroom withfuture Army oficers.

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ROTC

Because of their academic and mili-tary credential, military e!licem .atLoyola have alee been requested to lee-ture in other department. This getsthe military otticer involved in themainstream of academic life; he be-comee a contributor to the universitycommunity. Civilian profeesore recip-rocate and lecture in military scienceclaeeee. To date, hktory and politicalscience profeseore have lectured in thebasic couree while psychology” pro-fessors have lectured in the juniorclasme and sociology professors in thesenior claeees.

PMS ParticipationThe Loyola professor of Military

Science (PMS) and the MilitaryScience Department are behind tbieinterd]eciplinary approach to militaryecience. The PMS and bis offlcere ini-tiats and request, coordinate and plan.The PMS functions es a departmentchairman and the Military Science De-partment se a truly academic depart-ment. Last spring, Qyola’s chapter ofthe Blue Key NationaI Honor Fra-ternity so recognized Loyola’a PMSby selecting him to receive their an-nual honorary award. The award readin part:

He has trunuformed the militawscience department into a traly aca-demic effort making Lo@a a modelfor other achookf mdita?y 8cience &-partmentu. The initiation of the ‘Op-tion C’ progrum ezempli@ the quali-tieu of acndamic excellence and per-8onul irttegritg needed of our futureArnqt onera.

Still another bonus effect of TrackC is the participation of the MilitaryScience Department in an avant-garde“Free University.” The Free Univer-sity is a voluntary, no credit programoffered in an off-campus coffeehouse

whose classroom in a living room. lnS@ember 1968, one of. the Track. C

‘o~cera was aeked if he would. give’three lecturw in the Free University.He agreed and titled ~s lecture series“The MSitary Instrument.i’. With sucha title, the course drew moat of thedieaidents on campue. But because ofhis acade~lc as well as Ma militrmybackground, he was able ti. hold hieown.

Popular I%gramIn fact, the course became the most

popular one offered by the’Free Uni-~versity, apd the oillcer ‘actually gaveover 26 lectures lost school ,year. Need-1sss to say; the first few ecmiou weretense, but all parties inwdvad woongrew h respect eeclr other, and themeetings developed into a real learn-ing ~erienee. Thie involvement hasdone mucht@mprove the image of themilitary services and enhiqee ROTCon campus. It hae also giveti.the ltOT’Cstudent pride in hle depart@ant, mili-tary instructors, and future profea- ,eion.

ROTC at I.ayola Univerai@ of Chi-’cego is one of the inany Army ROTCprograms w~ch ie. progreiping and ,thriving in even these turbtilent days.And Loyola’e program wcs not the re-sult of student protee~ but the workof concerned civilian and military adu-catore. Let me not be misunderstood.Current criticism of the ROTC pra-gram ie not neceaearily ~npatriotic noris dieeatisfaction with the ROTC cur-riculum neceaearily dieloyaL On thecontrary, critical analysis ean be pro-ductive. The end result can be astronger ROTC program.

We muet be able to differentiate be-tween those who want ROTC com-pletzdy off campue because it %ainta”a university, and tbaee who desirechange in the curriculum in order to

4s’ Mmtsy Maw

bring it “upto the standards of the eca-demic aumnunity and ta improve thecollege education of the student andthe future Army 05a?r. My conten-tion is that the tatter group comprisesthe m~jority of our college, admiiiis-tratore, ftiulty, “ad students. It ie hthis group tltet the Army must addreaaitself, not just .~lng to the actions ,of a dissident minority, but taking theinitiative in m6eting the justifiablewants of the concerned majority.

Finally, given the a&@mic creden~tiala, the military otlicer can contrib-ute to and enliarme the over,@ uni-versity curriculum; We can, destroy the ‘allegations of those professors who tblatantly state that the military 05ceris not equipped ta discuss subjectc in-

ROTC

teketually, is narrow, or hcke free-dom of esprceeion. Most importantly,by our academic es well es our militarypiwfeeeionslie~ we can motivate col-lege efudenta toward careers in theh.

All’ w.$ es military officers, ask arethe means whim. in the universitycomnumfty, are the academic creden-tials. With the credentials,. we canstructure and teach the type of pro-gram which can compete with otherprofeaeione for quality college stu-dents. The costs are relatively low;the benefits in producing better odicersand inetifling professional pride arehigh. ROTC at Loyola University ofChicago is a bright example of whatcan be accompfishdd.

ROTC is one of the beat WSYSto aehfeve the sinmtteaeous blend of the ,civilian end military thet is so desirable in this vmmtry’s mitksry forces.The ROTC cedet end graduate exemptlt%vthe dtisen-soldier at Ydebeat. Hereceives a Ward eduestion sida by side with bii dvUian mntempomry. Butat the asroe time he rereivee the training nesaeaery to make him an effective*tery odlcer.

Aa.%vtant Seeretarp of Defense Roger T. KeUev(Manpower and Reserve AfPairs)

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