BLACKSBURG (WSLS 10) - The Virginia Tech Air Force ROTC Detachment 875 in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences was selected as the 2015 #1 Large Detachment in the country.
Virginia Tech says the
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award, which is merit based, is presented by the U.S. Air Force Air Education and Training Command.
Detachment 875 competed against 47 other large detachments in the country to win this prestigious award.
To qualify as a large detachment officials say there must be more than 82 cadets in the program. Virginia Tech's unit has nearly 200 cadets.
They say Detachment 875 produced the largest number of second lieutenants and the most distinguished graduates this past year.
The detachment was selected for the award based on many accomplishments, some of which include:
- Highest GPA among Air Force ROTC detachments at the five senior military colleges that have an Air Force ROTC unit, which also include Texas A&M, Norwich, VMI and the Citadel.
- Highest physical fitness scores among those five senior military colleges and 15th out of 145 in the nation.
- Most cadets participating in Department of Defense sponsored overseas summer programs.
- Highest number of summer field training graduates, with 49 graduates receiving a total of 33 awards.
- An aggressive training program run entirely by cadets.
Air Force ROTC is one of three ways to become an officer in the U.S. Air Force.
More than 1,000 colleges and universities offer the program, preparing college students for the responsibilities of being an Air Force officer.