Cadet Testimonials Current HOYA Battalion cadets speak about their experiences in Army ROTC and their decisions to become Army officers.

c/LTC Scott Eshom MSIV Cadet   Hello. My name is Scott Eshom and I am the Cadet Battalion Commander of Georgetown University’s Army ROTC program. Thank you for visiting our website – I hope that you find it both entertaining and useful for your questions regarding ROTC. The purpose of this testimonial page is to illustrate the varied backgrounds of Hoya Battalion cadets.   As for myself, I hail from a suburb of Seattle, Washington and grew up all my life knowing nothing of the military except what I knew from movies and TV. I had a great time in high school, playing varsity soccer and running cross-country and hanging out with my friends and family. I studied abroad in France while I was a junior, earned good grades, was an editor of the yearbook, a member of the homecoming court and thoroughly looked forward to college. When it came time to start the college search I worked with my parents on applications to several out-of-state institutions. My mother first suggested looking into ROTC as a way of serving my country and paying for school - I thought she was crazy. I did not know anything about ROTC and viewed the Army as the route taken by those who had nothing better to do after high school. Four years later, I discovered how incredibly wrong I was.   Regardless of my prejudice, I agreed to set up meetings with ROTC cadre at several of the universities I visited during my junior year. I was blown away by the beauty of the Georgetown campus and was nervous as I sat in the Army ROTC headquarters during my interview. In the end, I was so impressed that I decided to pursue a 4-year scholarship at the Georgetown Army ROTC program and apply to American University.   Upon acceptance to American, I was notified of my standing as a scholarship recipient at Georgetown. I came to Washington, DC ready to start school and anxious about being a cadet in the program. My first impression was that of apprehension. Many of the other cadets had grown up in the military and knew the proper customs and courtesies. As for me, I had not a clue. I made it a goal to learn as much as I could – and learn I did. At the end of my freshman year I finished near the top of my class and had aspirations of studying abroad. I was allowed to spend my whole sophomore year abroad. I spent the first semester in Brussels, Belgium, traveled around Europe including the Balkans and interned at NATO HQ with the Department of Defense thanks to my Army security clearance. The second semester I spent in Cameroon in central Africa, lived in four different host families and traveled around the region. I mastered my French, played soccer with the locals, interned with the National Defense University at a civil-military conference and spent the summer as a political/economic officer with the Department of State at the US Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon. Again, my security clearance in ROTC made this possible.   My junior year was again full of learning experiences. During the fall I interned at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies at the National Defense University. This past summer I traveled to Italy on a scholarship through West Point and was ranked 1 out of 43 at the ROTC summer camp. I was honored to recite the Cadet Creed in the presence of General Schoomaker, the Army Chief of Staff, and am extremely excited to further improve this wonderful program as the Cadet Battalion Commander this year.   ROTC has played a crucial role in my achievements these past three years. I am a stronger individual, have better people skills and leadership presence and am a role model for my friends from high school. I gave ROTC a chance and it has awarded me with several wonderful opportunities that no regular college student can even dream of. In May I will commission into the Army as a Second Lieutenant and hope to continue to travel about the world as I serve my country, lead troops, and improve myself as an American Soldier and an individual.   I encourage you to think strongly about what you want to accomplish in college and who you want to be upon graduation. ROTC is not right for everyone, but for many it changes lives and opens doors. It truly is the best class a college student can take. I thank my mother all the time for finding this opportunity – I hope you get the chance to as well. c/SFC Stephanie Burns MSIII   Throughout my entire high school career I had my heart set on attending the United States Naval Academy. I applied only to a few other schools in anticipation that the academy was right for me. However, after a short-lived experience I realized that becoming a Naval officer was not my desire. I decided to then enroll at American University, in hopes of eventually joining the National Guard. Upon realizing that Army ROTC was offered, I quickly became interested. However, I didn’t really know how to get involved. I was also unsure of how successful I would be. Once I returned for my sophomore year, I had noticed that an ROTC student in a past class from my freshman year lived on my dorm floor. I asked him many questions and he invited me to a 10-miler preseason practice. From then on I continued to go every day and quickly decided that is was right for me. I was looking for competition and a challenge, and 10-miler gave me that introduction into the program. The first semester of the program has been quite an experience as a compression MS I and MS II. My MS II class is by far my favorite class this semester. I’ve gained an immense amount of knowledge from Major Vandergriff. That class as well as the 10-Miler team have made this first semester so awesome and have motivated me to become a great officer. I can’t imagine a better semester than this one has been. The leadership skills that I am being pushed to develop will not only help me in my career as an Army officer, but throughout life in general. I am truly excited to see the person I become upon completion of the Army ROTC program at Georgetown University. c/2LT Matt Montazzoli MSIV   I won a four year scholarship out of high school - good grades, varsity golf, and service as Senior class president made me a competitive candidate. I chose to attend Marymount University, one of the schools that participates in Army ROTC through the Washington Consortium of Universities. Marymount provides free room and board as a special incentive for ROTC scholarship winners, which made it possible for me to come to school in the first place. The financial aid is great, but the leadership classes I've taken through ROTC have helped me to realize the program isn't about the money.   My ROTC classes have opened my eyes to the true meaning of duty, honor, and citizenship. My physical fitness, confidence, public speaking ability, and character development have all been greatly enhanced through the mentoring I've received from the cadre at the Hoya Battalion, and I have made friends I will value for the rest of my life. It has been written that "soldiers will not have confidence in an officer unless he knows his business, and he must know it from the ground up." Army ROTC has laid the groundwork for a thorough understanding not just of my business, but of myself. c/PFC Allison Brown MS II   When I first told my friends that I wanted to join the Army, they giggled and asked, “Why would a tiny little girl like you want to be in the Armed Forces? Isn’t that for big, tough guys?” Let me be the first to say, while I had my own reservations about how I would fit in, the Army, and Georgetown Army ROTC, is a program in which you can truly find your place.   I have always wanted to serve in the Armed Forces, and this desire was strengthened by the tragedy of September 11th, 2001. As I began looking at colleges the next year, I encountered the Army ROTC program, which would allow me to further both my education and my goal of serving my country. I am now a sophomore at Georgetown University studying International Politics and Security and I am in my second year with the Hoya Battalion. The ROTC program has added another dimension to my college experience. The physical and field training I have done have not only prepared me to serve in the Army, they have made me a more well-rounded person. In my fellow cadets, in good times and bad, I have found a family away from home. Being a member of the Hoya Battalion has been one of the best choices of my life, and I couldn’t imagine college without it. c/PFC Tim Mastrogiacomo MSII   I joined the Hoya Battalion at the beginning of my freshman year at George Washington University. The previous year I had considered taking some time off before college and enlisting in the Army, but ended up dropping the idea on account of my parents. The war in Iraq had spurred my original interest in the Army, and it was not until I saw its extended duration, and that of the War on Terror, that I began to consider longer term military service as an option. I decided to become involved with ROTC shortly before beginning classes, and am very glad to have done so.   I am currently attending Georgetown University as a Government major, and have been lucky enough to receive a scholarship from the Army. It is definitely challenging to balance ROTC, other extra-curricular activities, and academic classes, but I really feel that I am getting the most possible out of every day. Our location in the nation’s capital facilitates our growth as cadets in a very significant way. A front-row of defense oversight is available at congressional armed-services committee hearings, as is access to various governmental departments. As a freshman I was able to conduct interviews with Pentagon Public Affairs officers while doing research for a paper; this was made possible by my affiliation with Army ROTC. I look forward to my remaining two and a half years here. c/2LT Michael Creavey MSIV   I come to the Hoya Battalion from Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, a small town about twenty minutes north of Gettysburg. Currently an MS III in the ROTC program at Georgetown University, I am also a history major at the Catholic University of America. I was born in Augsburg, Germany to enlisted soldiers, and made my decision to join Army ROTC after years of being raised by two of the Army's very best. I've grown significantly in the program in the past two years, and I've greatly advanced my interpersonal skills, leadership abilities, and confidence. ROTC quickly imbues cadets with a sense of teamwork, integrity, and responsibility, as well as a multitude of other values. If you are looking for the very best way to selflessly serve our nation as a military officer, U.S. Army ROTC is for you.