Army News 

A life-changing conversation with a U.S. Army recruiter led Jack Sturgeon to join the military. After 25 years of helicopter flying and rescue operations, Sturgeon came to BYU as an army recruiter, helping students who are much like he was find their way. 

Despite knowing almost nothing about the military, Chaim Zuniga followed a prompting and joined BYU’s Army ROTC program, which is hosted through the BYU Marriott School of Business. Now, Zuniga—who credits God for his life’s direction—plans to become a United States Army chaplain so he can help others spiritually. 

During his early career in the United States military, Master Sergeant Wesley Gipson served multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan under the harshest and most demanding of circumstances.  At the time of his deployments, Gipson could not have predicted that he would later share what he learned from those experiences with young cadets as the newest senior military science instructor at the BYU Marriott School of Business.  

The BYU Army and Air Force ROTC programs held three commissioning ceremonies during April and May 2022. The Air Force ceremony recognized 13 graduating cadets for their entries as second lieutenants into the United States Air Force, and the two Army ceremonies recognized a total of 18 graduating cadets for their entries as second lieutenants into the United States Army.

Strapped in full gear, weapons, and backpacks, 11 BYU Army ROTC cadets hauled themselves up the steepest hills and terrain to finish the first day of the Sandhurst Military Skills Competition. As the cadets, who are from the BYU Army ROTC program hosted by the BYU Marriott School of Business, started to approach the end of the last task, a cadet from the team ahead became injured, falling behind. The BYU students stopped to help this competitor finish the rest of the challenge.  

The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, were life changing for 13-year-old Nathan Christiansen. That day, and the events that followed for years after, would inspire Christiansen to serve his country. Since completing the ROTC program at BYU, which operates under BYU Marriott, in 2012, Christiansen has been serving in the United States Army.

While growing up in a military family, Roland Griffith was also surrounded by members of the military who served as his leaders in youth programs for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The influence of these leaders inspired him to join the United States Army. Now, as the operations officer for the Army ROTC program at BYU, which is operated by the BYU Marriott School of Business, Griffith is committed to being a similar role model for his cadets.

When Scott Lovejoy was a newly enlisted medic in the United States Army, he received a surprise visit from his father. The conversation that took place during this visit was a turning point in the 18-year-old's life, reminding him who he was and how important faith was. This experience, along with his time spent in the Army ROTC program at the BYU Marriott School of Business, ultimately led Lovejoy to his career as a chaplain.

Family and friends clapped with excitement and joy as Army Black Hawk helicopters approached BYU campus during a ROTC event in October.

On November 11, 2021, the BYU Air Force and Army ROTC at the BYU Marriott School of Business commemorated Veterans Day through a wreath-laying ceremony and presidential review.

A group of BYU Army ROTC students finished tenth out of forty-four teams in the April 2021 Sandhurst Challenge at West Point, New York. Competing against leading ROTC programs from around the country, BYU Army ROTC cadets pushed past their limits and used their military skills to complete an extreme competition, testing both their physical and mental capacities.

Erin Ricks, BYU Marriott’s Department of Aerospace Studies program manager at the BYU Marriott School of Business, recently received three Air Force and BYU awards recognizing her for her efforts and dedication to leadership in helping to improve and uplift the BYU US Air Force and Army ROTC programs. Since joining the program, Ricks has accomplished several firsts for the BYU ROTC programs as a nonmilitary program director.

Whether he’s flying helicopters across Afghanistan and Iraq or running 100-mile ultramarathons, United States Army Major Jeff Timmons applies lessons about self-improvement and adhering to his values that he learned at BYU Marriott School of Business.

Brigham Young University ROTC student Kenna Brown, from Centerville, Utah, is one of only twenty-one women cadets in the BYU Army ROTC program. After watching military heroes during her childhood, Brown aspired to become an Army nurse, and she is committed to serving and healing others as they did.

In remembrance of the tragic events of September 11th, members from the BYU Army and Air Force ROTC joined together to reflect and honor the fallen.

BYU Marriott School of Business welcomes Lieutenant Colonel Seth Miller as the new department chair for the Department of Military Science and as the director of BYU’s Army ROTC program. Miller’s last assignment was in Fort Knox, Kentucky, where he was the military intelligence majors assignment officer for the US Army Human Resources Command. Miller took over for Lt. Col. Forrest V. Cook on 29 June 2020.

On 23 April 2020, five BYU Marriott Army ROTC cadets commissioned into the US Army in person at BYU during individual small ceremonies broadcast over Facebook Live while ten additional cadets commissioned in a group commissioning ceremony via virtual conference call. In addition to these fifteen Army ROTC cadets, Air Force ROTC cadets will commission into the Air Force on 15 May through virtual conference calls or in-person with audiences of less than ten people.

BYU Marriott School of Business dean Brigitte C. Madrian has announced the appointment of Bonnie Anderson as the school’s newest associate dean. Anderson takes over for previous associate dean Keith Vorkink on 18 May.

BYU Marriott finance alum Trevor Findlay treasures a clear memory from his early childhood: eagerly looking up to the sky, waiting for jets to fly by. He was at one of many air shows that his grandfather, then a vice president at Boeing, had taken him to—a bonding activity they both loved. Findlay also often found himself admiring a collection of model planes in his grandfather's home office. Findlay's fascination with aviation and the bond he had created with his grandfather would eventually lead him to his future career as a pilot.

For some people, a three-week visit to Hawaii may be the perfect chance to relax and enjoy the beach. However, for BYU Marriott Army ROTC cadet Garrett Falk, his time in Hawaii was an opportunity to develop survival skills.