Harvard ROTC explained

Unit Name:	Harvard ROTC
Country:	United States of America
Allegiance:	United States Navy, United States Army
Dates:	Founded in 1916
Specialization:	Officer Training
Garrison:	Cambridge, Massachusetts
Identification Symbol Label:	Distinctive Unit Insignia

Harvard ROTC was one of the first Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) units in the country, founded in 1916.^[1] The original program was led by Captain Constant Cordier.^{[2] [3]} By the fall of 1952 forty percent of the incoming freshmen class at Harvard University enrolled in programs that led to a ROTC commission.

Harvard has the third most graduates who have received the Medal of Honor. With eighteen recipients, only West Point and the US Naval Academy have more.^[4]

In 1969, in the middle of sometimes violent protests over the Vietnam War, Harvard downgraded the status of ROTC to an extracurricular activity. The cited reason was over academic standards on coursework.^[5] The military’s official departure from Harvard began in the years that followed.^{[6] [7]} For the next several decades Harvard’s connection to ROTC was by allowing their students to take ROTC courses at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

By 1994, in the midst of the controversy over the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT) law on homosexuality, Harvard committed to upholding ROTC ties, but only through indirect alumni contributions. This compromise prevented all ties from being severed as was recommended in the 1992 faculty committee report.^{[8] [9]}

Harvard University President Drew Faust promised a return of ROTC to campus, once DADT was repealed, in a speech with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen at the Kennedy School of Government on 17 November 2010.^[10] In December 2010 Congress passed a bill to repeal President Bill Clinton’s 1993 DADT Policy.

On March 4, 2011, Harvard University President Drew Faust signed an agreement with Navy Secretary Ray Mabus formally recognizing the return of Naval ROTC to Harvard’s campus.^{[11] [12]} According to the agreement's terms, a Director of Naval ROTC would be appointed, and Harvard would provide funding for the program. The Navy agreement was structured to go into effect when the repeal of DADT was implemented, and was followed by a similar agreement with the Army.^{[13] [14]} President Barack Obama, who in his 2011 State of the Union address called on all universities to open their doors to ROTC,^[15] responded through his spokesman by saying:

Harvard Medal of Honor recipients

Name	Rank	Service	Conflict	School
		US Army		Harvard College (1845) and Harvard Law School (1848)
		US Army		Harvard Law School (1853)
		US Army		Harvard Lawrence Scientific School (1857)
		US Army		Harvard Medical School (1859)
		US Army		Harvard College (1862)
		US Army		Harvard College (1865)
		US Army		Harvard Law School (1866)
		US Army		Harvard Law School (1867)
		US Army	Apache Campaign	Harvard Medical School (1884)
		US Army		Harvard College (1880)
		US Marine Corps	VeraCruz, Mexico	Harvard College (1880)
		US Army		Harvard College (1899)
		US Army		Harvard Law School (1908)
		US Navy	USS Memphis (CA-10) destroyed near Santo Domingo City	Harvard Graduate School of Applied Science (1913)
		US Air Force		Harvard College (1920)
		US Army		Harvard College (1909)
		US Marine Corps		Harvard College (1951)
		US Army		Harvard Business School (1970) (Attended but did not graduate.)

Notable alumni

• Anthony Brown, Harvard College (1984) and Harvard Law School (1992), U.S. Representative (MD-4) and Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve.
• Eliot A. Cohen, Harvard College (1977) and Harvard University (Ph.D. 1982), Counselor in the U.S. Department of State (2007–2009), Director of the Strategic Studies Program at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies of the Johns Hopkins University.
• Paul G. Kirk, Harvard College (1960) and Harvard Law School (1964), Chairman of the Democratic National Committee (1985–1989), U.S. Senator from Massachusetts (2009–2010).

External links

• Harvard
• Advocates for Harvard ROTC
• Air Force ROTC
• Army ROTC
• Navy ROTC
• US Army
• US Navy
• US Air Force
• US Marine Corps

Notes and References

1. Web site: The Harvard Veterans History Project . 2011-04-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110621002134/http://www.harvardveterans.org/news/ . 2011-06-21 . dead .
2. Web site: Harvard Crimson 3 January 1916: Captain Cordier in Command . 29 January 2022 . 19 September 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160919203225/http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1916/1/3/captain-cordier-in-command-pthe-war/ . live .
3. Web site: Harvard Crimson 23 September 1916: Reserve Force Proposed . 29 January 2022 . 19 September 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160919194705/http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1916/9/23/reserve-force-proposed-pthe-recent-act/ . live .
4. Web site: Advocates for Harvard ROTC: Medal of Honor Recipients from Harvard University . 2011-04-19 . 2011-07-14 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110714131709/http://www.advocatesforrotc.org/harvard/honor.html . live .
5. Web site: What to Do About ROTC: Extract from the Minutes of Special Meeting of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Harvard University, February 4, 1969 . January 29, 2022 . May 8, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210508152008/https://www.advocatesforrotc.org/harvard/1969faculty.html . live .
6. Web site: Harvard Crimson 12 August 1969: Army Plans to Terminate Harvard ROTC in 1970; Air Force Stays Until '71 . 29 January 2022 . 19 September 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160919193158/http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1969/8/12/army-plans-to-terminate-harvard-rotc/ . live .
7. Web site: 23 June 1971: Letter from the Office of the Chief of Naval Personnel to the Commanding Officer of the Harvard NROTC Unit on its Disestablishment . 29 January 2022 . 7 July 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100707051154/http://www.advocatesforrotc.org/harvard/navy1971.html . live .
8. Web site: 2 October 1992: Report of the Harvard University Committee on the Status of ROTC . 29 January 2022 . 5 April 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210405130333/https://www.advocatesforrotc.org/harvard/committee_92.html . live .
9. Web site: Harvard Crimson 1 December 1994: Report Upholds ROTC Tie, But Without Direct Funding . 19 April 2011 . 6 October 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121006001821/http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1994/12/1/report-upholds-rotc-tie-but-without/ . live .
10. Web site: Harvard Crimson 18 November 2010: Drew Faust Endorses Return of ROTC . 29 January 2022 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210611062635/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2010/11/18/dont-harvard-military-rotc/ . live .
11. Web site: Harvard Crimson 4 March 2011: Harvard Signs Agreement To Officially Recognize Naval ROTC . 29 January 2022 . 1 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170801053722/http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2011/3/4/harvard-dont-rotc-military/ . live .
12. Web site: Advocates for Harvard ROTC article 4 March 2011: Harvard - Navy ROTC Agreement Signed . 29 January 2022 . 24 April 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160424085609/http://www.advocatesforrotc.org/harvard/nrotc.html . live .
13. Web site: Harvard Crimson 22 March 2012: After 43 Years, Army Welcomed in Harvard Yard Once More . 29 January 2022 . 17 November 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211117190349/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/3/21/srotc-army-harvard-agreement/ . live .
14. Web site: Advocates for ROTC article 28 March 2012: Harvard Army ROTC Office Opening Ceremony . 29 January 2022 . 22 October 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151022134906/http://www.advocatesforrotc.org/harvard/army2012.html . live .
15. Web site: 25 January 2011: Remarks by the President in State of Union Address . 25 January 2011 . 29 January 2022 . 22 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220122135232/https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2011/01/25/remarks-president-state-union-address/ . live .