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TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
125 ‘Years
Tradition Bound by Spirit
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By Courtney Stelzel
THE BATTALION
Texas A&M has a rich mili
tary tradition that defined the
Agricultural and Mechanical
College of Texas in 1871 and
continues today to play a role
within the University.
A&M hosts more military
cadets than any other school in
the nation, with the exception of
the U.S. military academies.
“The Corps are the keepers
of tradition,” said Corps
Commandant Maj. Gen. Ted
Hopgood. “And that is what I
believe defines Texas A&M.”
Since its inception, the
Corps has played an important
role in the military by supplying
more than 44,000 commis
sioned officers, said Dr. John
Adams, a Corps historian and
author of three books profiling
the history of A&M.
Fifty percent of living gradu
ates joined the military in World
War II alone, Adams said.
In his most recent book.
Keepers of the Spirit: The Corps
of Cadets at Texas A&M
University, 1876-2001, Adams
said that Texas A&M had
20,229 cadets and graduates
fight in World War II. This was
twice as many participants as
the Citadel and Virginia Military
Institute (VMI) combined.
A&M lost 953 men in battle —
two to three times the number
from other military institutions.
Among the A&M men who
served in the armed forces,
seven were Medal of Honor
recipients and 10 fighter aces, a
large percentage compared to
other schools.
A&M sent 2,217 enlisted
men into battle during World
War I. The school held the
record for the second-highest
number of men sent to World
War I, falling short only to VMI,
that sent 2,292 enlisted men.
“By 1937, President
Z
Ol’Army L.ou Had only
one regret in life....
not being there to serve you on day one.
Congratulations
Texas A&M
on your first
125 years.
You can count on us to be here
for you for the next 125 years.
LOUPOT’S
BOOKSTORES
Celebrating 70 years of serving Aggies.
Roosevelt came to campus to
recruit cadets because he knew,
even then, that we would proba
bly be going to war, and he real
ized the caliber of men that were
graduating from this school,”
Adams said. “He wanted them
on the battlefields fighting for
our country’s freedom.”
Cadets also were active par
ticipants in the Korean and
Vietnam Wars.
“There were 50 general offi
cers in Vietnam, more than
A&M sent for service in World
War I or World War II com
bined,” Adams said.
In Keepers of the Spirit,
Adams writes that during the
1960s, A&M commissioned
more than 1,700 officers in the
armed forces, and by the end
of the century, 50 of those had
reached the rank of general or
flag officer.
Today, the Reserve
Officers’ Training Corps
(ROTC) programs at A&M are
growing. The Army ROTC
office reports 217 cadets with
military contracts, 35 soon will
graduate and become military
officers in the Army.
The Air Force program leads
ROTC programs on campus,
with 471 cadets currently with
contracts. The Navy ROTC pro
gram hosts 122 cadets with mid
shipmen contracts and 45 cadets
commissioned to become offi
cers through the platoon leaders
program.
The Corps will continue this
degree of commitment to the
armed forces for years to come,
especially if the United States
goes to war, Adams said.
“The Corps of Cadets is
constantly challenged to main
tain high-level leadership
training, retention within the
ranks and an atmosphere con
ducive to academic excel
lence,” Adams said.
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