UH’s Air Force ROTC Detachment 003 program is one of the fastest growing in the nation, and is the only program that gives cadets an opportunity to intern with NASA.
The program has seen a 28 percent expansion in the past year and is expecting an additional 50 percent increase with this semester’s incoming cadets, said Capt. Quoc Vo, Detachment 003’s admissions officer.
‘Our tremendous growth is due to the great support University of Houston has given us in the past, and we are pretty sure the support will continue well into the future,’ Vo said.
The growth could also be attributed to the unique opportunities Detachment 003 provides cadets, Vo said.
For cadets like Joshua Wendell, who served in the army before enrolling in the UH Law Center, the most attractive aspect was AFROTC’s one-year program.
‘I knew when I got out of the Army that I wanted to become a Judge Advocate once I received my J.D.,’ Wendell said. ‘I decided, after much internal wrangling, that the U.S. Air Force presented the best opportunities for me.’
Detachment 003 facilitates cooperate with the Department of Defense through research conferences, creating multiple chances for partnership.
‘The objective for the DOD conferences is to increase collaboration between the DOD research offices such as the Air Force Research Laboratories and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency with the research expertise offered by UH faculty,’ Vo said.
AFROTC holds discussions featuring speakers who work in authoratative roles, such as UH football coach Kevin Sumlin and UH President Renu Khator.
‘The leadership seminars are a partnership between (numerous colleges) and the ROTC programs, which provide a free two-day seminar on leadership to UH and the local community,’ Detachment 003 commander Col. Philip Bossert Jr. said.
AFROTC’s will hold another two-day executive leadership seminar this month, featuring guest speaker retired Brewster Shaw. Shaw is a retired Air Force colonel, working as head of Boeing NASA Systems. Those interested may attend the workshops, September 17-18 at the pavilion of the M.D. Anderson Memorial Library.
