Wearily the Class of 2023 arose before sunrise on a cool, clear Saturday morning in February, just three weeks before the coronavirus quarantine would interrupt their freshman year. On this day, they weren\u2019t awakened by their cadre; instead, the freshmen were in charge of themselves. The responsibility was theirs and the day belonged to them because the day\u2019s Leadership Reaction Course (LRC) was designed exclusively to develop their leadership skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The freshman LRC is a relatively new event administered by the Commandant\u2019s Office. The course has two main objectives. The first, to prepare cadets for future endeavors as cadets and throughout their lives by building moral courage within leadership. The second is to prepare freshmen for the transition to sophomore year. At the start of the exercise, freshmen were divided into random teams. The teams worked together in the various scenarios and LRC stations. The stations were difficult and wide ranging; some focused on physical endurance such as water jug carries, while others, like leadership lectures, were academic. At certain times, cadets were forced to rely on specific skills like planning, creativity and teamwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was definitely different,\u201d said Cadet Lawrence Ferguson, an Army contract cadet. \u201cAs knobs we were always told what to do, but that role was different during the freshman LRC. The course showed me that leadership is difficult but worth the effort.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n