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Ringing out the old, bringing in the new
Virginia Tech Magazine readers met Cadet John Steger in the fall 2009 issue as he was beginning his semester as the regimental commander, charged with leading the regiment of just under 770 cadets. To say that Steger (pronounced "Stay-ger") had a good year would be an understatement. He made personal accountability the watchword of his command policy; if ever a cadet led by example, it was Steger, who excelled in all phases of cadet life--fitness, academics, and leadership. Steger captained the Virginia Tech Army ROTC's running team in the Army 10-Miler in October, the largest 10-mile race in the world. For the second consecutive year, Virginia Tech's team was the best ROTC team in the nation. On the academic side, Steger graduated with a 3.84 GPA, with a double major in history and political science and a minor in leadership studies, and was named the Outstanding Senior in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences. His leadership was recognized with the Undergraduate Student Leader of the Year Award, the seventh consecutive year the honor has gone to a cadet. He became U.S. Army 2nd Lt. John Steger in May. Overall, the corps had another great year, leading the way on campus in living up to the university motto with more than 7,900 hours of community service. Over the course of the year, the corps surpassed its goal of collecting 500 units of blood for the Red Cross. The cadets, who represent about 3 percent of the undergraduate student body, donated 516 units of blood--17 percent of the total collected at Virginia Tech. Success with service was matched on the academic front: The average spring semester cadet GPA was 3.03, and 395 cadets made the Commandant's List with a 3.0 or better. The Class of 2014 arrived on campus 350 strong, part of a regiment of 850 cadets, the largest corps since 1969. The incoming class is almost evenly split between in-state and out-of-state students, and females comprise just over 16 percent of the class, continuing the growth of that demographic. The states outside of Virginia with the largest numbers of incoming cadets are Maryland and Pennsylvania. Freshman cadets boast an average GPA of 3.83 and SAT scores of 1223. The Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets remains a vital program that blends the longest-standing tradition on campus with a top-notch leadership experience.
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