Marking the beginning of its annual leadership conference today, the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets is preparing to host fellow cadets from around the country for a series of interactive lectures and a keynote speech from a former Navy SEAL and Rhodes Scholar.
The conference kicks off today as cadets and faculty from Tech and other national military schools gather to discuss leadership in today’s military. About 30 guests from senior and junior military colleges will attend.
Colonel Dave Miller, Tech’s deputy commandant for leader development, said the conference is designed to give “a diverse opinion and the opportunity for cadets to voice their own opinions” on leadership issues.
Miller also said the conference gives cadets a good chance to get “real world experience,” as some of them helped to organize the conference.
“Our cadet staff really puts this conference on,” Miller said.
Cadet major Jason Oberoi, a senior political science major, is in charge of a staff of six cadets that has been working to organize the conference.
Oberoi said his team has had to learn how to deal with many logistical issues, including providing meals and places to stay for visiting cadets, as well as writing the schedule for the conference, organizing discussion groups and reserving meeting rooms.
“This is run completely by cadets,” Oberoi said. “My guys have gotten the experience of, ‘Hey, this is how you actually plan something, this is how you write a training plan,’ and that’s awesome.”
Students and faculty will meet in groups to network with one another and share thoughts on topics that include peer leadership within the military and the way technology will continue to shape leadership in the future.
“These are not trivial issues they’re discussing,” Miller said.
After holding discussions on Thursday and Friday, cadets will present their findings on Saturday morning.
Oberoi said the groups have been specially designed to bring a wide range of perspectives to all participants.
“We have a way of training and we have traditions here, and other places do things differently,” Oberoi said. “It can only help you to grow to hear from others.”
The conference also features a keynote speech tonight at 7 p.m. in Burruss Auditorium from Lieutenant Eric Greitens. Greitens is a Navy SEAL and founder and CEO of The Mission Continues, a nonprofit organization designed to assist wounded veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars in transitioning to U.S.-based leadership positions.
Greitens is a Rhodes Scholar and a Truman Scholar. His speech is free and attendance is open to the public, including those not associated with the corps.
On Friday evening, conference participants will host a formal retreat ceremony on the upper quad at 5 p.m. that features the firing of Skipper and a performance by the Highty-Tighties. This event is also open to the public.
On Saturday evening, a formal military ball and senior banquet will be held.
Miller said the conference, which has been held annually at Tech since the mid 1960s, is a good way for cadets from different branches of the military to network with one another.
“It’s always good for you to broaden your horizons and to meet folks who are going into the same career path,” he said.
Oberoi said the main benefit of the conference is “to have the ability to bounce ideas off of other guys.”
“You are going to have to work with someone from another branch at some point in your military career,” he said.