University midshipmen (left) and cadets (right) line Saint Mary’s Road to honor the life of Fr. Hesburgh during the funeral procession March 4. Many students, faculty and staff joined the procession.
The new Army ROTC officers for Notre Dame’s upcoming 2015-2016 academic year have recently been announced and will be commissioned during a ceremony Saturday.
“It's been a fantastic academic year, and the seniors did a great job leading the Fightin' Irish Battalion and mentoring the underclass cadets,” Lieutenant Colonel John Polhamus, Notre Dame’s professor of military science, said, “This past year the cadets participated in many activities including … the Military Appreciation Football Game, a Veteran's Day vigil and ceremony, multiple field training exercises, a military staff ride to Gettysburg, participation in Father Ted's funeral activities and an Army Ball.”
The newly announced officers include cadets from several nearby colleges and universities; Notre Dame, Holy Cross College, Saint Mary’s College, Bethel College, Indiana University South Bend (IUSB) and Valparaiso University,
Although some of the cadets do not attend the University, they are all a part of the Notre Dame ROTC program, Polhamus said.
"Our ceremony is a joint commission ceremony for all services and all schools," he said. "All other schools provide a representative leader to participate in the ceremony as part of the stage party — [University Executive Vice President] John Affleck-Graves is Notre Dame's representative. Even though some of the cadets go to other schools ... we hold one big commissioning ceremony."
According to Polhamus, 13 cadets are being commissioned to Second Lieutenants.
From Notre Dame, the following cadets will be commissioned:
- Eric Peace, who will commission into active duty and become an Infantry Officer.
- John Pearl, who will commission into active duty and become a Field Artillery Officer.
- Colin O'Shea, who will commission into active duty and become an Infantry Officer.
- Chris Croushore, who will commission into active duty and become an Infantry Officer.
- Catherine Hogan, who will commission into active duty and become a Signal Corps Officer.
- Connor Rademaker, who will commission into the National Guard and become a Quartermaster Officer.
- Michael Loftus, who will commission into active duty and become a Field Artillery Officer.
- Angelina Goheen, who will commission into the Army Reserve and become a Medical Service Corps Officer.
- David Ramer, who will commission into the Army Reserve and become an Ordnance Officer.
- Nicole Maenza, who will commission into the National Guard and become a Transportation Officer.
From Bethel College, cadet Chelsea Ward will commission into the Army Reserve and become a Military Police Officer.
From IUSB, cadet Ray Donovan will commission into active duty and become an Armor Officer.
All 13 cadets will be commissioned during a ceremony Saturday at 9 a.m. at DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. The ceremony will be held by the Tri-Military Notre Dame ROTC and presided over by Lieutenant General David Halverson, Commanding General of the U.S. Army Installation and Management Command.
“As their professor of military science for the last four years, I'm very proud of the class of 2015,” Polhamus said, “I'm very confident that they will be outstanding military officers, and I'm excited to hear about their future successes. They are fit and ready to join the Army team, and I wish all of them the best of luck in their careers.”
