As part of the ROTC 100th anniversary celebrations on April 1, 2016, Chinook, Apache, and Blackhawk helicopters landed on the Intramural Fields on the Mines campus. (Credit: Agata Bogucka)
The year 2016 marks the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Army ROTC programs in the United States. Colorado School of Mines was designated the ROTC Company for the Battalion (13 metro area schools) to host the celebration, which included the following events that took place in conjunction with E-Days festivities on April 1.
- Cadets from Army ROTC Buffalo Battalion, joined by Air Force Cadets, conducted a three-mile run on the Mines campus.
- A series of cadet competitions and workshops were held on the Intramural Fields and in the Student Center ballrooms.
- Helicopters (featuring the Chinook, Apache, and Blackhawk) landed on the Intramural Fields, and pieces of heavy-duty equipment were on display in Parking Lot D.
- President Paul C. Johnson and Major General Funkhouser spoke from the stage at Lot D. Following the speeches, Hugh W. Evans ’49 and CPT Ryan Gibbons ’09, MS ’09 used sabers to cut the 100th “birthday” cake.
In 1919, with the War Department’s authorization, Mines became one of the first four colleges in the United States to establish a reserve officers training corps (ROTC). Since the program’s inception, Mines has commissioned more than 2,400 officers for the U.S. Army. The Golden Buffalo Battalion received U.S. Army Cadet Command’s MacArthur Award in 2013 and 2015, naming the Mines ROTC program as one of the top eight in the nation.
