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Regimental commander urges CMA cadets to lead with honor, humility

Samuel Shi, The Vedette

Col. Michael Squires, commandant of cadets, salutes incoming Regimental Cmdr. Juan Urruela (left) and outgoing Regimental Cmdr. Jack Christiansen. (Photo by Mo Morales) 

 

Second Make Regimental Cmdr. Juan Urruela urged the Corps of Cadets to strive for excellence in all that they do and to embrace the opportunities that Culver Military Academy provides.

“Let us cultivate a culture of mutual respect, integrity and strive for excellence in all that we do. Together, we will uphold the highest standard of the Culver Military Academy and we will lead with honor, serve with humility and strive to make this the best year yet,” he said.

The change of command ceremony at Eppley Auditorium on Sunday began with First Make Regimental Cmdr. Jack Christiansen passing the Culver Military Academy colors to Col. Michael Squires, commandant of cadets, who then handed down to Urruela. The two regimental commanders saluted each other, marking the official transfer of responsibility for the Corps.

Squires talked to the cadets about the challenges of being an officer.

“It’s a big deal to command an organization because officers are responsible for everything that happens or fails to happen in their unit. They’re the ones I look to when you screw up or we screw up or I screw up, it’s the officers I go to to help me fix that problem,” Squires said.

Squires said the primary role of an officer is to set conditions for success. The most important condition for success at Culver is creating and maintaining a positive command climate in your unit, he said.

“You take care of your people. You put others before yourself. You’re positive in all that you do. People want to work for you,” Squires said.

Squires told the cadets that this is his favorite time of year because it is when new cadets must pass their boards before they are welcomed as full members of their units in the Corps of Cadets. To pass, they must correctly answer from memory nine of the 10 questions posed to them by officers during a culminating board interview, as well as passing a series of inspections and tests throughout the previous week.

Col. Michal Squires, commandant of cadets, told cadets that primary role of an officer is to set conditions for success. (Photo by Mo Morales) 

 

Logan McGuire, regimental adjutant, told the cadets the mission for the second make is to create a shared spirit of brotherhood and to always strive for excellence guided by the principles of honor, duty and service and cultivating responsible citizens and leaders equipped to meet the needs of tomorrow.

He said the regimental goals were to have direct supervision from regimental and battalion staff during boards to ensure a thorough and correct training of new cadets; to create a spirit of brotherhood and teamwork by fostering mutual respect, empowering others to act and by having open communication, to have two or fewer laundry gigs per unit and to exercise the chain of command by utilizing the regimental, battalion and unit staffs effectively.

Aiden Zhang, regimental honor captain, told the cadets that there had been some incidents last semester of students using artificial intelligence improperly. Zhang said the Honor Council plans to work to educate students about how they should study and how to incorporate artificial intelligence as a study guide.

Squires told the students that the main cause of honor violations at Culver Academies is poor time management, procrastinating instead of tackling assignments early.  

“It’s just a time management problem,” he said.

Squires told the cadets the most important thing to him is that he wants to know he can trust a cadet when he shakes his hand just before they walk through the Iron Gate. He told them it’s better to take a failing grade on an assignment than to cheat.

“Take the hit,” he said. “Because the last thing you want is me questioning your integrity when you walk through the Gate.”

Urruela told the cadets that they should remember that they are part of something bigger than themselves and they should work to find a way to make a positive impact in the world around them.

“Believe in yourself and your abilities. Never doubt your potential. With hard work, dedication and a positive attitude you can achieve anything you set your mind to,” Urruela said. “I am confident that with your dedication, hard work and commitment to Culver, this will be an unforgettable year.”

 

Regimental Cmdr. Juan Urruela urged cadets to strive for excellence. (Photo by Mo Morales) 

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