Photo By Staff Sgt. Michael Folkerth | Andrew Spicer, an Air Force cadet from the University of Texas, Austin, attempts to...... read more read more
FORT HOOD, Texas - Reserve Officers Training Corps cadets from the University of Texas, Austin, joined forces with the 9th Air Support Operations Squadron at Fort Hood to participate in a two-day leadership training exercise held April 17-18.
The exercise was developed to challenge the cadet’s abilities to effectively use teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills. Cadets participated in events such as a leadership reaction course, land navigation, small unit tactics, and urban operations.
Lt. Col. Langdon Root, the commander of the 9th ASOS, considered it an honor for his personnel to be able to partner with the ROTC program at UT Austin and help train and influence the future Air Force officers.
“Working with our Tactical Air Control Party members gives these young future officers a glimpse at the organizational professionalism and excellence they will soon be a part of,” said Root. “In very real terms we get to help shape the future of the Air Force.”
Members of the 9th ASOS who put together the program said they designed the events to put the cadets under pressure. Leadership is not only about developing a plan, but being able to adapt to any situation as it changes. The leadership reaction course in particular challenged the cadets. The course offered the cadets several scenarios to complete with limited time and resources, forcing the cadets to think outside of the box and work together to solve each problem.
“We do this annually in the spring, it’s a great opportunity,” said Michelle Solsberry, one of the senior cadets with the ROTC program at UT Austin. “This is something we face at our final field training. You’re graded on a scale of 1-26 on a leadership competency evaluation. These are huge portions of what you’re graded on. Its practice for that.”
A major part of developing leadership skills is the honing one’s ability to work as a member of a team.
Solsberry said the training events of the day helped get people to work together. Group thinking comes into play. There are those people who are more creative but don’t get to use their creativity because the group as a whole is on a different train of thought. However once they are able to get those creative thoughts out there, then things start to flow a little smoother.
First Lt. Benson Oldmixon, one of the cadre in charge of the Air Force cadets at UT Austin, hoped that his trainees learned from the training how to cope with pressure and how to react no matter what the situation was.
“As officers, they need to be able to handle anything that comes their way, regardless of the situation,” he said. “Some of them handle the pressure well, some don’t, but they all need to be exposed to it because regardless of what their career field is you never know when you might face a situation where you have to handle immense pressure. You have to be able to make that decision, regardless if it’s the best decision or not, especially if someone’s life is in your hands.”
While the cadets were able to participate in the challenging training, Root also hoped that the trainees were able to understand they are about to become a part of something special: an Air Force Family.
“The United States Air Force is a proud organization built on people,” said Root. “We work together, play together, fight together, and win together. I think the UT cadets got a glimpse of how awesome their future is if they can make the cut.”
| Date Taken: | 04.17.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 04.20.2015 16:37 |
| Story ID: | 160596 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 416 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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