Chime In How Naval ROTC Shaped My Years on the Hill, and Beyond Stories You May Like For Student Veterans, Program House Offers a Home Base Campus Memorials Pay Tribute to Cornellians Lost in Wartime How Well Does the U.S. Care for Its Veterans? An Expert Weighs In It wasn’t easy being in uniform during the Vietnam War era, but military service made me a better student—and a better man “Chime In” comprises brief first-person essays by Cornellians. Do you have a topic in mind? Email us at cornellians@cornell.edu. By Don Stanton ’72 Serving in Naval ROTC enriched my Cornell experience and helped me throughout life in learning to work with, and listen to, people from different perspectives. I am thankful for the opportunities during my years in NROTC, which took me out of my comfort zone and challenged me academically. The Navy required classes I would never have taken, ranging from naval architecture and engineering, celestial navigation, calculus, and business management to something brand-new called “computer science.” In September 1968, I signed up for NROTC in Barton Hall in a new class of 77 midshipmen out of about 300 total in the unit. Over our four years, we were given increasing leadership roles and spent about six weeks each summer gaining experience on fleet ships, at a naval air station, and with the Marines. During these summer “cruises,” we worked with NROTC midshipmen from the Naval Academy and other institutions like Prairie View A&M (home to the first Black NROTC), the University of Texas, the Citadel, and Duke, which broadened our views about the country. As an ensign on a destroyer in 1973. Cornell was founded as a Morrill Land Grant school, and Ezra Cornell was a strong proponent of military training—which complemented his vision, “I would found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study.” The University has a distinguished history of training well-rounded officers, commissioning over 5,000 (more than any other institution in the U.S.) during World War I and over 15,000 through the Navy V-12 program in World War II. Today Cornell remains the only Ivy League school which still has all three ROTC services on campus. But during my undergraduate years, hatred of the draft, President Nixon, and the Vietnam War increased, and protests escalated on campus. Some felt emboldened to purge the University of any signs of the military by protesting contracting and recruiting—even burning and defacing the shrine in the World War I memorial at the base of Libe Slope. During my undergraduate years, hatred of the draft, President Nixon, and the Vietnam War increased, and protests escalated on campus. Others resorted to aggressive acts to remove ROTC from Cornell by vandalizing property and breaking up drills in Barton Hall. Many students directed their wrath toward ROTC members because we wore the uniform of the United States—one day, some jerk went out of his way to knock the white hat off my head—and by 1972, only 17 of the original 77 in my class were commissioned. I worked my way through Cornell in a cafeteria, in the business school library, and as a dorm counselor. In spring 1969, we were briefed that several midshipmen had left the program due to various pressures, and scholarships were available. I interviewed and was excited to be awarded a full-tuition scholarship for a regular Navy commission, so I took the opportunity to transfer from CALS and applied to Arts & Sciences to be a history major. I showed up for my interview with an assistant dean, who had a gray brush-cut and was leaning back in his chair smoking a cigarette. In 1977, as a lieutenant serving as a patrol plane pilot. Stories You May Like For Student Veterans, Program House Offers a Home Base Campus Memorials Pay Tribute to Cornellians Lost in Wartime When I walked in with my short hair—which really stood out on the Arts Quad and in classes—he was shocked, almost falling out of his chair as he exclaimed, “Are you in ROTC?” I said, “Yes sir, I am.” He said, “Damn it, I was in one of General Patton’s first tanks to cross the Rhine, and I don’t think we should have stopped until we got to Moscow—do you?” I said, “We should have kept going to Moscow”—and was admitted to Arts & Sciences. There were several of us ROTC people in Arts, and we stood out; it was easier being on the Engineering or Ag quads. But being an Artsie during those years changed my perspective. There were several of us ROTC people in Arts, and we stood out. But being an Artsie during those years changed my perspective. Along with my core history courses, I took chances and enrolled in Russian language, Chinese foreign policy, comparative revolutions, and art history—which broadened my Cornell experience and helped me later in life. (When Arts & Sciences stopped giving credit for ROTC courses in 1968, NROTC leaders pivoted and required all midshipmen to take Professor LaFeber's excellent classes on American diplomatic history.) The author's 2018 collection of veterans' stories. I eventually went on to work with many foreign representatives—including the Russians in the 1990s, and again in the 2010s on U.S.-Russia confidence-building efforts—and spent too many years on various staffs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Commerce and Transportation departments. During the 1969–70 academic year, Cornell had come within a handful of votes of throwing ROTC off campus. Over the past decades, many Ivy alumni have worked hard to get ROTC back on their campuses. Cornell managed to survive those years thanks to cool heads like President Dale Corson and others, who took personal risks and showed great leadership in standing up against the prevailing winds. We need to remember the University’s long history of training well-rounded officers, and that Cornell ROTC has never fully recovered from those protest years 55 years ago. To honor the legacy of our founder and to support the all-volunteer military, we should work to help Cornell’s ROTC programs provide more leaders to serve during these increasingly challenging and dangerous times for America. Don Stanton ’72 wrote the 2018 book Looking Back at the Cold War: 30 Veterans and a Patrol Plane Commander Remember. He teaches seniors’ courses for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Johns Hopkins and American University. A former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, he served on ships off Vietnam and flew as a patrol plane commander. (All images provided.) Published February 12, 2024 Comments Paul W Mayne, Class of 1974 12 Feb, 2025 Hi Don Thanks for the link and remembrances of those years at Cornell. I too worked in several cafeterias on campus, with the early 4:30 a.m. shifts on Tuesdays & Thursdays, and of course, Saturday nights. Yes, we had to take extra classes, e.g. Naval Ship Systems, with no credit given on the semester terms. I had 21 hours on several terms, but only 15 hours counted towards my degree. My buddy Larry lent me his “Afrosheen” so I could plaster my long hair down but eventually I relented and had a proper haircut. Sure was different times then. Much later, I ended up as a Professor of GeoEngineering at Georgia Institute of Technology which today does have ROTC for Army, Navy, and Air Force. God bless you man. Reply don stanton, Class of 1972 13 Feb, 2025 Paul, thank you so much for all your memories and for your many years of service in educating young people which is a key front-line for America. I am thankful that the editors included the references to Cornell’s veteran memorials which many students and alumni do not know much about. 264 died in WWI–they and other Cornellians who died in service during wars and peace should never be forgotten. Reply Daniel Tandy, Class of 1972 17 Feb, 2025 Hey Don, Thanks for the memories and your extended service. Certainly remember all the great midshipman experiences on campus and during summer training… especially some of the competitions and traditions working with fellow midshipmen from lots of other schools. I agree…in these challenging times, keeping all ROTC programs and even adding more should be a proiority. Thanks again for all your efforts. Reply don stanton, Class of 1972 20 Feb, 2025 Dan, Thank you for your comments which bring back memories of very different times both at Cornell and in the USA. Reply Julian Max Aroesty, 1/Lt USAF, Class of 1953 4 Mar, 2025 How different this experience is from that of the early ’50s when, as a land grant college, 2 yr of ROTC was required of all male Cornellians. When Korean War began, we believed and obeyed our government, volunteering for elective 3rd and 4th year ROTC, as much to serve our country as to avoid being drafted before completing our education. I am a first generation American who joined the Teamsters Union, working as a laborer in the summer, and working in Cornell food service to pay for meals. I was base manager of K47 airbase in Chunchon Korea, where I had on the job training in management of 250 airmen, as well as assisting the Korean people rebuild Chunchon via the AFAK (Armed Forces Assistance to Korea) program where I was in charge of building an orphanage, a widows workshop and a nursing school. I believe we should have mandatory service for 1 or 2 years, not necessarily in the military, but also serving in so many areas that would benefit from our involvement in the US and the world. Reply don stanton, Class of 1972 4 Mar, 2025 Julian, Thank you for your many years of service in Korea building orphanage, widows’ workshop, and the nursing school which helped our American foreign policies so much. I think that your generation should be also called “the greatest generation” because of the sacrifices you all made when America was trying to get back to building families and communities in the 1950s and you all had to deploy all over the world. Wishing you a good year ahead! don Reply Leave a Comment Cancel replyOnce your comment is approved, your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Class Year Email * Save my name, email, and class year in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ Other stories You may like Chime In I Aided Afghan Refugees—With my Interior Design Skills Quizzes & Puzzles Eek! How Much Do You Know About Creepy-Crawly Big Red History? Cornelliana 100 Years of Hospitality Education on the Hill: Fascinating Facts