Proud of SC-954

Our cadets worked really hard at Converse College Cadet Leadership School, and we couldn't be prouder. We had two cadets, Kristina Bracewell and Daniel Lee who earned national awards for their outstanding performance as Cadre Cadets. Our top two Basic Cadets were Lawrence McDowell followed closely by Josh Whitaker. Our other CLS graduates (in random order) were: Kim Bracewell, Erin Fuller, Rebecca Francis, Chante Moss, Lexus Carr, Chase Thompson, Justin Harrison, Logan Smith, Zach Curran, Andrew Hooper, and Thomas Smith (Cadre). Each cadet will be awarded a graduation diploma and challenge coin (first-time attendees) at an appropriate ceremony. MSgt Clere and I bought each one a much-coveted souvenir tee shirt to show their status as Converse graduates.

Our graduation parade was outstanding as usual thanks to the planning of SMSgt Jesse Cranford from Daniel AFJROTC - and the hard work of all cadets involved. We were extremely pleased to have our Principal, Mr. Lance Radford, serve as the Reviewing Officer for the parade.

Only At Converse

No other leadership school presents such handsome awards to recognize the best at the Converse College Cadet Leadership School. We are the school that published and uses a study guide called Horizons - similar to Contrails used at the United States Air Force Academy. Cadets may not love it, but it stresses attention-to-detail and self-discipline. Then there's our Standardization and Evaluation team - a highlight unique to Converse. This team puts leadership in the hands of cadets - not instructors.

A Day at Converse

Our cadets did not need alarm clocks at Converse - 5:30 am came with a bang. Then it was 45 minutes of physical training followed by showers, breakfast, room inspections and a first-class "open ranks" uniform inspection of the entire Cadet Wing. The rest of the day included drill, parade practice, lunch, more drill and parade practice, dinner, and evening athletics. Drink, drink, drink - beat the heat, drink - were the most frequent yells during the day. But there was time to relax along the way, and the food was great!

Let The CLS Games Begin

From June 6th until the graduation parade on June 13th, Wade Hampton AFJROTC cadets received full exposure to the training environment provided by the Converse College Cadet Leadership School (CLS). From 5:30 am until 10:30 pm, our cadets experienced the very best in teamwork, attention to detail, inspection, evaluation, athletics, academics - and a little fun along the way. For 13 years Converse College CLS has been considered one of the best "summer leadership laboratories" in the US. It is consistently rated as the best in Area 3. After our evaluation by the Air Force this summer, our Area Administrator put these comments in his report "Converse SLS* has THE BEST training and evaluation program I have seen. The school provides a wonderful training environment". Wade Hampton High School is proud to be the host for this awesome leadership school.

* Note: SLS stands for Summer Leadership School in Air Force lingo. Some leadership schools (Citadel, Newberry, etc.) call their programs Cadet Officer Leadership School (COLS), but ours is termed CLS (Cadet Leadership School) since units attending Converse do not promote all graduates to cadet officer rank. So now you know.

Awards Ceremony Honors Principal

In addition to all the cadet awards at the ceremony, we presented the very first "Sword of Honor" to our Principal, Mr. Lance Radford, for his tremendous support of the AFJROTC program during the past year. Thanks to his support we were able to take some wonderful trips, purchase much-needed supplies and equipment, and secure an honors program that will help many cadets in the future. Thank you, Sir. The "Sword" will be presented annually to the individual or organization that has done the most to further the goals of our program.

Junior and Senior Awards

One of the highlights of our annual awards ceremony came with the presentation of awards to our top juniors and seniors. Josh Whitaker (bottom right) received the first Lance Radford Leadership Award, and Kevin Hinnant (center) and Ashley McCullough (top right) were named Distinguished Cadets. Amanda Harper (top left) received the Director's Award for four-years of dedicated service to the program.

All of the Top Awards Are Presented

Some of our top awards went to some of our hardest workers. Ashley McCullough (top left)receives the American Legion Academic Excellence award from Mr. Joel Heiser while Mr. Dave Fudge presents the Daedalian medal to Josh Whitaker (top right). Mr. Heiser also presented the American Legion Military Excellence medal to Thomas Smith (center left), and Mr. David Johnson presented the Sons of the American Revolution medal to Chris Savage (center right). Major Guy Palmer presented the Reserve Officers Association medal to Dean Kroeger (bottom left).

We also honored special team members (Kristina Bracewell, Thomas Smith, Rebecca Francis, and Josh Whitaker), recognized Richard Mack and Kimberly Bracewell as the best in inspection, and presented our first Spirit Award to Logan Smith.

Our Cadets of the Year were also announced: Taylor Crowe, Rebecca Francis, Thomas Smith, Kristina Bracewell, Victoria McLeod, and Josh Whitaker.

The Awards Kept Coming

Kristina Bracewell (top row left) receives the Military Officers Association of America award from Mr. Joel Heiser while Daniel Lee (second row center) is awarded the Scottish Rite award by Captain I. Lewis Langley. Rebecca Francis (top center) receives the Veterans of Foreign Wars medal from Mr. Charles Moore, and Richard Mack (top right) is awarded the National Sojourners medal by Major Guy Palmer. Andrew Hooper (fourth row center) is awarded the Military Officers Association of America medal while Gregory Little (third row right) receives the Veterans of Foreign Wars award from Mr. Charles Moore. Major Guy Palmer presents the American Veterans Association medal to Graves Newell (bottom left) and the Military Order of the Purple Heart award to Victoria McLeod (bottom right).

Big Night for Freshmen

Lawrence McDowell (center) is presented the Veterans of Foreign Wars medal by Mr. Charles Moore, a District official with this very supportive veterans association. Abby Harrison (top left) and Chase Thompson (top right) received the Air Force Sergeants Association medal from MSgt Wilton Fowler while Kim Bracewell (bottom) was awarded the Military Order of the World Wars medal by Captain I. Lewis Langley, a perpetual member and former commander of the Order.

Cadets Shine with National Awards

Lexus Carr (center left) receives the Reserve Officers Association award and Salem Stewart (center right) was presented with the American Veterans Association medal by Major Guy Palmer, a Citadel graduate and US Army veteran. Erin Fuller (top right) walked away with the Sons of the Union Veterans medal while Josh Potts (bottom left) and Logan Smith (top left took home the Retired Enlisted Association awards. Mr. Dave Fudge from the Warbirds Association made the presentations. Mr. Fudge is a long-time friend and supporter of AFJROTC.