By CARL E. FEATHER - Lifestyle Editor - cfeather@starbeacon.com
Star Beacon
January 19, 2009 10:56 pm
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ASHTABULA – Eric Cornelius, a 2005 Lakeside High School graduate and senior at the University of Toledo, will receive The George C. Marshall ROTC Award this spring.
The award was established in 1976 to recognize outstanding Army ROTC members.
“It’s the highest ranking cadet for any ROTC battalion in the United States,” said Cornelius in a phone interview last week. Factors that go into the award include grade point average, fitness score, academic performance and leadership roles.
The award’s namesake considered the ROTC – Reserve Officer’s Training Corps – an indispensible part of the nation’s self-defense capability. The award reflects Marshall’s high regard for the program, which provides more than 60 percent of the Army’s newly commissioned officers.
The 270 or so cadets chosen for the honor will gather in Lexington, Va., in April to receive their awards and participate in the Marshall Seminar on the National Security of the United States. The all-expenses paid trip includes top-ranking speakers, round table events and other opportunities for the cadets to further their knowledge of policy, strategy and leadership.
Two years ago, Cornelius was one of only four ROTC cadets chosen to participate in an Olmsted Foundation trip ROTC and West Point cadets. A West Point instructor served as adviser for the trip to Greece, which provided extensive travel and exposure to the culture.
“Not many people get that kind of intense cultural immersion,” he says. “It’s to expose future military officers to that culture.”
The son of Gerald and Valerie Cornelius, Eric is attending the University of Toledo on an ROTC scholarship.
His goal is to fly. Even as a high school student, Cornelius was interested in flying for the Army, although he knew getting into flight school would be extremely competitive.
Last year he began the process of qualifying for that school. He took and passed the Army Flight Aptitude Standardized Test in spring 2008 and passed his flight physical. He got his approval in the fall of 2008.
“I am up there in the 7 percentile,” Cornelius says of his ranking as an ROTC cadet. “I was going to be competitive enough to have a good chance (at flight school).”
He graduated from the Army Airborne School, Fort Benning, Ga., in June 2006. He made five jumps from C-130 and C-17 aircraft.
Cornelius will be commissioned as a second lieutenant when he graduates from Toledo May 8. He has not received orders, but plans to work as a recruiter this summer while he awaits assignment to the series of Basic Officers Leadership Courses. He hopes to be in flight school in Alabama by the end of the year.
Flight school can take one to two years, depending upon the aircraft assignment. Cornelius hopes he’ll qualify for an Apache, the most prestigious position.
After flight school, he’ll have a commitment of four years to the Army. He hopes to earn his master’s degree during that time.
While his father is a police captain and his mother a teacher, Cornelius’ career interests are in the sky. He says Army helicopter pilots are sought after by medical and other private firms.
“A lot of what you learn as an officer makes you marketable to these companies,” he says.
Cornelius’ younger brother, Kevin, recently completed U.S. Marines boot camp. There’s a slight but good-natured rivalry between them.
“He’s just back from boot camp and has had that proud Marines mentality driven in him,” Cornelius says of his brother. “He’s a proud Marine.”
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Photos
ERIC CORNELIUS