The U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program (WCAP) is a military unit whose primary mission is to support nationally and internationally ranked soldiers in participating on the U.S. Olympic team. The program is headquartered at...
I assume that Ivy League Rojo never went to the military.
What a stupid idea to have young kids sign up for something they don't understand. A couple years after their athletic adventures the US government send them into a silly war in a country they would not be able to point out on a map and lose their limbs or come back mentally damaged.
Does the U.S. Military really have a hard time filling it’s officer ranks with smart, semi-athletic, in shape people?
My experience (about thirty years ago) was that ROTC scholarships and service academy appointments were relatively hard to get and that most officers are in pretty good shape. I would guess the average ROTC scholarship student at any given college is a better student than the average athlete at the same college.
I don't believe the intent here is for the college educated athletes to be officers. As you say, officer commissions are highly competitive, and many applicants are turned away. This program is to fill the enlisted ranks. However, a force of college educated privates, airmen, and seamen can pose its own problems. Cleaning weapons and chipping paint, not mentioning literally watching paint dry ("fire watch" - in case a fire starts), certainly is not mentally stimulating. So, the business major with a concentration in organizational change might just start organizing within the ranks. In that light, perhaps the true intent of the program is seen.
The scholarships should be granted by the government instead of building bombs and planes. The Pentagon budget is way over what it should be, it should be shifted to education instead of guns and bombs.
As mentioned, these opportunities already exist via the Military academies and ROTC.
Coaches should actually be looking looking at how they can leverage ROTC scholarships to increase their team numbers. With only 12.6 scholarships available, a coach should already be working with the ROTC office to recruit additional talent. Both departments can benefit from this arrangement. Would there have to be some give and take? Yes, but overall it can work out well. Coaches get to conserve limited scholarships while gaining quality athletes and students. ROTC gets to tell potential recruits they could compete at the D I level and maybe make WCAP. Students get the benefit of free college, athletics and a guaranteed job after graduation.
BTW, did this myself and after three combat tours have yet to have my face blown off as many of the experts on this board have suggested would happen.
As mentioned, these opportunities already exist via the Military academies and ROTC.
Coaches should actually be looking looking at how they can leverage ROTC scholarships to increase their team numbers. With only 12.6 scholarships available, a coach should already be working with the ROTC office to recruit additional talent. Both departments can benefit from this arrangement. Would there have to be some give and take? Yes, but overall it can work out well. Coaches get to conserve limited scholarships while gaining quality athletes and students. ROTC gets to tell potential recruits they could compete at the D I level and maybe make WCAP. Students get the benefit of free college, athletics and a guaranteed job after graduation.
BTW, did this myself and after three combat tours have yet to have my face blown off as many of the experts on this board have suggested would happen.
If my post was deleted because a commissioned officer like yourself believes my post interferes with recruiting, should you comment on the post you likely got deleted?
I like the d3 concept better. No sports scholarships. Sports are extracurricular activities.
I would argue at D3 they are very much a marketing/ admissions activity. D3 schools added sports because high school kids wanted to keep playing especially guys wanted to keep playing football. With them paying tuition, fees, room and board that can be quite a haul for the college.
At D1 it is a marketing activity that the schools have embraced. They get paid a lot of money and get 3+ hours of free advertising for the university. How much would 3 hours of ad time on ESPN cost?
This is a terrible idea and another example of the US Government preying on young kids who don't realize the consequences of what they are agreeing to.
"Hey kid, here's a $120,000 loan, with 4% interest that will take you 30 years to pay off. Sign here!"
"Hey kid, you want to play tennis for 4 years for free? You just have to risk life and limb until you turn 30, then you'll have PTSD for the rest of your life!! Oh, but you'll have access to a terrible medical program!"
First off you cannot borrow that much money for an undergraduate loan. The big numbers come from people going to grad or professional (med, dental, law, etc) school.
Kinda interesting that we have service academies that basically do the same thing.
Get the military out of our sporting events, out of our schools and out of our communities. We should support military schools, ROTC and National Guards, we should honor our veterans, but we should not let our society be overrun by the glorification of war. Modern marketing/propaganda is pushing the military into places it shouldn’t be in our communities.
Get the military out of our sporting events, out of our schools and out of our communities. We should support military schools, ROTC and National Guards, we should honor our veterans, but we should not let our society be overrun by the glorification of war. Modern marketing/propaganda is pushing the military into places it shouldn’t be in our communities.
The National Guard is in all of our communities, and a member could be living next door to you. Why would you want them out? Now, if you believe we should return to the original state militia system free of Federal Government control and the lure of the addictive Federal dollar, that would be a constructive argument to make.
Get the military out of our sporting events, out of our schools and out of our communities. We should support military schools, ROTC and National Guards, we should honor our veterans, but we should not let our society be overrun by the glorification of war. Modern marketing/propaganda is pushing the military into places it shouldn’t be in our communities.
The National Guard is in all of our communities, and a member could be living next door to you. Why would you want them out? Now, if you believe we should return to the original state militia system free of Federal Government control and the lure of the addictive Federal dollar, that would be a constructive argument to make.
I literally said we should support National Guards. I have two Guard families on my block and a retired veteran on my street. None of them bring the military into our community: they are not patrolling the streets with M-16s, they don't post propaganda in their yard and they aren't hanging out at schools to groom kids into joining the military (official recruiters are okay at a school, as long as they don't have a long-term presence). My veteran neighbor flies a U.S. Army flag, but that is not propaganda, he is simply proud. If he put up a recruiting flag instead, such as "Army of One" or whatever slogan, I might have a different opinion of him.
War glorification is a sign of a sick society, same with militia fetishists.
That is an ignorant comment. If it wasn’t for the men and women that defend our country past and present you wouldn’t have the freedom you and all of us enjoy each and everyday. Never ceases to amaze me the ignorance in these forums