A Message from the Commandant of Cadets

May 2025

To the Parents, Families, and Friends of our Corps of Cadets:
 

In just a few days the Class of 2025 will toss their hats and pin on Second Lieutenant bars as they officially join the legacy of the Long Gray Line. We are incredibly proud of your soon to be graduates and are confident that they are prepared to be the leaders of character our Army needs and Soldiers deserve. Their graduation and commissioning are in no small part due to the collective support you have provided these young men and women throughout their West Point journey. And so, from the United States Corps of Cadets, congratulations to you, as well as your graduate.

During this past semester, our Corps had exceptional team and individual achievements. Amongst the notable cadet accomplishments was the awarding of the Coach Mike Krzyzewski Award for Excellence in Teaching Character Through Sport to Cadet Jackson Vagner (B3, 2025, Flag Football) for Company Athletics, Cadet Colleen Gogolin (F2, 2025, Women's Team Handball) for Competitive Club Athletics, and Cadet Taylor Brown (F1, 2026, Softball). The Pershing Award in gold, silver, and bronze, which recognizes the best essays from the Superintendent's capstone course (MX400), was awarded to Cadet Bethany Jablon (13, 2025), Zoe Eggleston (G1, 2025) and Cadet Kayla Jones (A1, 2025) respectively. Cadet Sam Dickerson (F4, 2025) and Cadet Isaiah McNeilly (E4, 2025) placed fifth out of thirty-seven teams from across the Army in the 2025 Best Sapper Competition and won the NSPFT (Non-Standard Physical Fitness Test) event. For Company Athletics, this semester's Brigade Champions were: C4 (Flickerball), E1 (Ultimate), B4 (Functional Fitness), B4 (Orienteering), H1 (Team Handball), and A3 (Grappling). And to top off an already stellar semester, the USMA Black team took home the Cadet Reginald E. Johnson Memorial Award Saber Plaque for a three-peat overall win of the Sandhurst Military Skills Competition. Well done!

As you read this, the transition to Cadet Summer Training 2025 is upon us! West Point leadership looks forward to watching our cadets—and soon-to-be new cadets—actively engaged in summer military training. As we work to continually enhance training, this summer will feature greater integration of technology in small unit tactics, renewed focus on basic survival skills, and sustained emphasis on night operations to develop agile, combat-ready leaders of character. This summer the upper three classes of cadets will take part in incredible summer training and development opportunities across the globe. Your cadets will be participating in Cadet Troop Leader Training (CTLT) at over 20 bases around the world. CTLT is crucial to their development as they learn about the operational Army, branching possibilities, and Army posting options. Cadets will also be in the Italian Alps, attending the Italian Climbing Course, in Hawaii for the Jungle Operations Training Course, in Slovenia for the NATO Mountain Warfare Training, and in Georgia for Georgian Mountain School, to name a few. Closer to home, cadets will attend the Tank Commander Course and Recon and Surveillance Leader Course at Fort Benning and Pathfinder at Fort Campbell.

Transitions can be challenging even for the most seasoned of leaders. As always, remind your cadets to remain engaged with their Tactical Teams and detail leadership throughout the summer. Encourage them to reach out if they have questions or concerns as they navigate their summer developmental experiences. And remind them to take advantage of and enjoy the numerous opportunities afforded to them this summer!
 

Duty, Honor, Country!

R.J. GARCIA
Brigadier General, USA Commandant of Cadets