Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets The Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets ( VTCC ) is the military component of the student body at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University . Cadets live together in dormitories , march to meals in formation , wear a distinctive uniform on campus , and receive an intensive military and leadership educational experience similar to that available at the United States service academies . The Corps of Cadets has existed from the founding of the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1872 to the present - day institution of Virginia Tech , which is designated a senior military college by federal law . Overview . The Corps provides leadership training for all of its cadets . A cadet will have the opportunity to receive an academic minor in Leadership when they graduate through the Rice Center for Leader Development which is in the Pamplin School of Business . This is a unique endeavor in Senior Military Colleges . While not mandatory for membership in the Corps , many members of the Cadet Corps also participate in the Reserve Officer Training Corps ( ROTC ) and become commissioned officer s in the U . S . Military upon graduation . Around 80 % of the corps ' graduates choose to participate in ROTC and receive a commission in the military as officers after graduation . If a cadet is enrolled in an ROTC program at Virginia Tech , they must also be enrolled in the Corps of Cadets . However , a cadet does not have to be enrolled in an ROTC program in order to participate in the corps . There are a few exceptions made for active duty enlisted students participating in programs like the Army ' s Green to Gold program . Women entered the VTCC in the Fall of 1973 and created a single unit called L Squadron . By 1979 , women were integrated into the line companies , though they still lived separately from the males in their units . In 1981 that changed and the dorms became co - ed and women were allowed to live in the same unit area as their male counterparts . In 1987 , the first female Regimental Commanding Officer ( CO ) was appointed . To date , the Corps has had 4 female Regimental Commanding Officers . Today the Corps is nearly 14 % female and females hold a number of positions throughout the Corps . History . Early years of the Corps . On October 1 , 1872 , Virginia Tech opened as the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College ( VAMC ) . All students were cadets organized into a battalion of two companies with an enrollment of 132 . The Commandant of Cadets was General James H . Lane , formerly the youngest general in the Army of Northern Virginia , who was wounded three times in combat . He worked to provide both the best education and the best military training in the state for his cadets based on his experience in the Civil War , and as a student and teacher at VMI and UVA , and as a teacher at Florida State Seminary and North Carolina Military Institute . General Lane is considered the father of the Corps . He wrote the first cadet regulations and began the tradition of academic and military excellence . In 1878 , VAMC President Charles Minor wanted to do away with the strict military requirements . Lane opposed him and their disagreement became so heated that a faculty meeting ended with a fistfight between the two . Both left campus in the ensuing scandal , but the Corps remained . The VAMC cadets made their first Corps trip in 1875 to Richmond to the dedication of the Lee Monument . Over the years , the Corps has made many trips . These trips were more frequent in the early years including the Pan - American Exposition in Buffalo , New York in 1901 and the St . Louis World ' s Fair in 1904 . In 1880 , political mismanagement from Richmond contributed to enrollment dropping to just 78 cadets . But in the ensuing years , enrollment and educational opportunities were expanded . E Battery , manning four Civil War artillery pieces with upper classmen , existed between 1883 and 1907 . In 1896 VAMC , through an act of the Virginia Legislature , changed its name to the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute . The name was quickly abbreviated in common usage to VPI . Also that same year a tradition began that lasted nearly three - quarters of a century , the VPI - VMI annual football game in Roanoke . Known as the Military Classic of the South , the annual Corps trips and associated parades ended in 1970 . Spanish American War service . In 1898 , with the outbreak of the Spanish American War , the VPI Corps of Cadets formally volunteered to the governor for combat service . This request was declined , but most of the VPI Cadet band and their director enlisted as the Band of the 2nd Virginia Infantry Regiment . Many alumni served in the Spanish American War and the Philippine Insurrection . One alumnus ( A . M . Gaujot . Class of 1901 ) was awarded the Medal of Honor during the Philippine - American War and another cited for gallantry at the Battle of Santiago de Cuba . The Gaujot brothers remain the only two brothers in American history to receive the Medal of Honor for actions in two separate wars . The VPI Cadet Band had first been organized in 1892 . Prior to that , as early as 1883 , music was provided by the " Glade Cornet Band , " an organization made up of townspeople . The summer of 1902 saw the VPI Cadet Band serve as part of the 70th Virginia Infantry during large - scale national military maneuvers held in Manassas , Virginia . The VPI Cadet Band has been referred to as the Highty - Tighties since 1921 . World War I . With the approach of World War I , the ROTC was established at Virginia Tech . In January 1917 , Infantry ROTC was established followed shortly by Engineer and Coast Artillery . During the war , Virginia Tech became an army post . Cadets were inducted and became enlisted men of the Student Army Training Battalion and its Navy detachment . They wore Army and Navy uniforms during this period . Two Army training detachments of between 226 and 308 men each operated on campus . CPT . J . W . G . Stephens ( class of 1915 ) , of the 26th Infantry , led the first American forces " over on top " in combat near Montdidier , France . Many alumni served with distinction with the 1st , 2nd , 29th , and 80th Divisions , all of which saw heavy combat . Note must be made of Major Lloyd W . Williams ( class of 1907 ) , US Marine Corps . One of the famous quotes of the war , used for years as a Marine standard , was attributed to him . " Retreat , Hell No ! " was his reply to the French orders to retreat his company . His company held its ground , but he was killed in the action and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross . In the air , alumni , even as World War I foreshadowed VPI ' s contribution to the Air Force , CPL Robert G . Eoff ( class of 1918 ) , French Foreign Legion , attached to the 157 French Fighter Squadron shot down the first of 6 enemy aircraft credited to Techmen . LT John R . Castleman ( class of 1919 ) was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross ( United States ) for heroism in completing an aerial reconnaissance in spite of the attack of 12 enemy aircraft , two of which he shot down . VPI ' s contribution to the war effort during World War I included 2 , 297 men in uniform . These included 2 , 155 in the Army , 125 in the Navy , 19 in the Marine Corps , 6 in the Coast Guard , 1 in the British Army and 1 in the French Foreign Legion . One alumnus ( Earle D . Gregory , Class of 1921 ) was awarded the Medal of Honor , seven the Distinguished Service Cross ( United States ) , and one the Navy Cross . At least eight were awarded the Silver Star . Twenty - six died in service and another twenty - six were wounded . Based on this , VPI was designated as one of twelve ' Distinguished Colleges ' by the War Department . After World War I , veterans affected the Corps and VPI at large , both as new and returning cadets . In 1921 , women were admitted to VPI as civilian students and attended classes as day students . The next year the Corps was reorganized into a regiment of two battalions . Two years later ( 1923 ) military service as a cadet was reduced from four years to two ; however , after two years of the camaraderie of Corps life very few cadets chose to convert to civilian student status . During the national rail strike of 1923 the corps again volunteered to the Virginia Governor for active military service . They were not called upon . A Third Battalion was added to the regiment by 1927 . Rapid growth followed as Virginia Tech ' s reputation as both an outstanding academic and military institution grew . In 1939 , a Fourth Battalion was added . World War II years . During World War II , academic sessions and the Corps operated on a twelve - month cycle . The Corps had grown to a brigade of 2 , 650 cadets consisting of two regiments with a total of five battalions . The First Battalion was primarily Infantry ROTC . The Second Battalion was Engineer ROTC and the Third , Fourth and Fifth consisted of Cadet Batteries taking Coast Artillery ROTC . Because of the war , seniors were graduated and commissioned early . Juniors were on an accelerated schedule and brought on active duty . Finally , sophomores and freshmen over 18 were largely inducted into military service . The Corps soon numbered under 300 and was organized into a single battalion . During the war , the Commandant of Cadets , in addition to the cadet battalion , supervised a unit of the Army Specialized Training Program and Army Specialized Training Reserve Program ( ASTRP ) ( soldiers under 18 years of age ) and a Navy pre - flight - training unit . These units included many former cadets , and adopted many of the traditions of the Corps , including the Honor Code and saluting the Rock . The young men of the ASRTP were actually uniformed in cadet gray . Once again VPI was largely an active duty military installation . During World War II , 7 , 285 alumni served in uniform . The army had 5 , 941 men , the navy 1 , 095 , 110 in the Marine Corps , 29 in the Merchant Marine , 23 in the Coast Guard , and one in the Royal Air Force . These included ten Brigadier Generals , five Major Generals , and one Rear Admiral . Three hundred twenty - three died , five were awarded the Medal of Honor , seven the Distinguished Service Cross , two the Navy Cross , at least 73 the Silver Star , and 94 the Distinguished Flying Cross . Following World War II , returning veterans were not required to serve in the Corps and the great influx of veterans swelled the number of civilian students . Civilian students out - numbered cadets for the first time in 1946 . That same year Air Force ROTC was introduced to Virginia Tech . Initially civilian - cadet relations were not good as most veterans were attending Virginia Tech for the first time . Thanks to the regimental commander , Cadet Robertson ( class of 1949 ) , a World War II Coast Guard veteran , greater understanding was promoted among his fellow veterans and the Corps continued to grow and flourish . During the following years the Corps would expand again back to a regiment and eventually organize into four battalion - size units . The Cadet 1st Battalion was housed at Radford Army Arsenal for two years at " Rad - Tech . " There , in World War II Army barracks , the cadets lived and took many of their classes . For unavailable classes , a fleet of buses brought them back to the main campus . As new dorms were completed the battalion returned to campus . Korean War . During the Korean War , 1 , 867 corps alumni served , of whom 30 died in service . During the war , First Lieutenant Richard Thomas Shea , Jr . ( Class of 1949 ) received the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions at Pork Chop Hill as a company commander . In 1952 , the university employed a retired general as the Commandant of Cadets . This was a departure from policy since 1884 , where the senior active duty military instructor functioned as commandant . 1950s , 1960s , and 1970s . In 1958 , Virginia Tech became the first traditionally white southern college to graduate an African American , with the graduation of Cadet Charles Yates ( class of 1958 ) . In a move to expand educational opportunities at Virginia Tech , the board of visitors made participation in the Corps completely voluntary starting in 1964 . However the taking of ROTC continued to require Corps membership . The Vietnam War period saw unrest on campus outside the Corps ranks . In 1970 demonstrations were conducted with the aim of halting Corps drill . Cowgill and Williams Hall were occupied and over 100 students were arrested . Other incidents occurred including the suspected arson of an on - campus building . Civilian - cadet relations were at an all - time low . Throughout all of this , the Corps maintained discipline and high esprit . The post - Vietnam years saw the Corps numbers decline and reorganization to a two - battalion sized regiment . In 1973 , Virginia Tech was among the first Corps of Cadets in the nation to enroll women , assigning them to L Squadron . In 1975 , the first female cadet was assigned to Band Company . In 1979 , L Squadron was disbanded and female cadets were integrated into the line companies . In 1991 , the Cadet dormitories became coed . 1980s and beyond . The freshman " Rat System " converted to the " New Cadet System " in the fall of 1981 . Naval ROTC was established in 1983 . The cadet regiment expanded to a three - battalion structure in 1998 . Today the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets is one of six senior military colleges outside the five federal military academies . Virginia Tech is one of only two universities in the nation that maintains a full - time military environment within a larger civilian university ; the other is Texas A & M , which also dubs its institution the Corps of Cadets . The Corps at Virginia Tech has seen many turbulent years and weathered them all . Since the Spanish American War , the corps has provided officers to the U . S . military . Most recently , the War in Iraq has seen three alumni killed . The valor of Corps alumni is legendary , with seven Medal of Honor recipients , and eighteen recipients of the nation ' s second highest award for valor , the Distinguished Service Cross or Navy Cross . The Corps exemplifies in many ways the University motto , " " Ut Prosim " " — that I may serve . Organization . The Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets ( VTCC ) is a cadet - run organization , consisting of approximately 1000 members ( as of fall 2013 ) , and is modeled on an Army infantry regiment structure . The Cadet Corps is supervised by a senior leadership staff who establish cadet regulations and enforce base line guidance for the running of the cadet corps . The day - to - day corps activities , however , are run primarily by the cadets . Senior leadership . The senior leadership is provided by the Commandant of Cadets , who is appointed by Virginia Tech and is a paid faculty member . The Commandant is typically a retired Major General from either the Army or Air Force . Of note , the VTCC has never had a Commandant from the Navy or the Marine Corps . The Commandant is assisted by three Deputy Commandants who oversee the cadet battalions and one Deputy Commandant for Leader Development . There is also an Assistant Commandant of Cadets for Recruiting and an Assistant Commandant for Alumni Development . The Commandant of Cadets is assisted by an Executive Officer , typically a recent civilian track corps graduate who assists in administrative matters and also serves as the Traveling Recruiter . A Resident Life Coordinator is also assigned to the Corps in order to be a liaison between the University and the Corps . In recent news , positions designated as " Battalion Training NCOs " have been established . The preferred NCOs are retired E - 7 ' s or higher to mentor cadets on NCO responsibilities as well as to aid the Deputy Commandants . The Director of the Regimental Band , the Highty Tighties , is also a member of the Commandant ' s Staff and is normally appointed from the officer ranks of the Virginia Militia . Commandants of Cadets . " From the day of its founding to the present Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University has had a commandant of cadets . The session of 1880 - 1882 is unique however . The Board of Visitors failed to appoint either a commandant or a president . Acting President Hart thereupon appointed a senior cadet as acting commandant and permitted this individual to select other seniors as acting assistant commandants . With this one exception all commandants have been appointed by the Board of Visitors . " Cadet Regiment . The Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets is organized on the level of an Army infantry regiment . The following is the structure for the 2009 - 2010 Academic Year : Regimental Staff Regimental Special Staff Battalion staff Company staff The Regimental Band has these additional ranks exclusive to their company : Up until the Fall of 2008 , all senior cadets were granted the rank of Cadet 2nd Lieutenant regardless of whether they had a billet , unless they had shown substandard performance . Additionally , all seniors were entitled to wear a gold chin strap on their cover regardless of rank and had the privilege to carry a saber . During that semester , the regulations were changed so that only seniors with a requisite billet would be cadet officers . All other seniors would maintain enlisted cadet rank and would no longer be allowed to wear a gold chin strap or carry a saber . The following is the rank breakdown of personnel with no billet by class year : A cadet of any class year who commits a serious infraction may be reduced in rank to cadet private , which carries no insignia . The modern freshman training system . Before classes . Freshman cadets are required to report to Virginia Tech a week before the start of classes for training , also known as New Cadet Week . During this week , the new cadets are trained in drill with and without a weapon and also receive physical training to help prepare them for the rigors of leadership and the upcoming stresses of the academic year . The week ends on Saturday with the New Cadet Parade , where the new cadets march under arms for their families and university staff , as well as a crowd of friends and fellow Virginia Tech students moving on to campus . The parade is intended to display the change in the new cadets and their acquisition of military knowledge and discipline . After this event , the new cadets are given approximately 30 hours of pass so they can stay overnight off - campus with their families . During this freshman pass , the returning upperclass who were not cadre move into their rooms in Upper Quad ( Brodie Hall , Rasche Hall , and Monteith Hall ) . Red Phase . The cadet training system at Virginia Tech has evolved through the decades , with each iteration seeking to improve the quality of leader produced by the program . Beginning with the class of 2004 , the current cadet training system was implemented . The new cadets officially begin Red Phase upon returning from pass at 1830 ( 6 : 30 pm ) for their first study hours Sunday evening . A freshman cadet typically has eight - and - a - half hours of unstructured time during a weekday in which to attend classes , study , run errands , and workout . Red Phase , like the color red , is the most intense phase , and the new cadets continue to be trained by their cadre ( juniors and seniors who were specifically trained to train the freshmen ) . They will be expected to learn topics from " The Guidon " , the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets book of knowledge and will be quizzed on topics from the Guidon during " Freshmen Online " , more commonly referred to as " onlines " . Onlines are conducted Monday through Thursday and last for one - half hour . Onlines typically go away at the end of Red Phase . To delineate the phases , the cadets and cadre go on the Caldwell March , envisioned as the direct replacement for " Turn Day " . The Caldwell March is named after the first student at Virginia Tech , William Addison Caldwell , and there is a statue of him by Brodie Hall on campus . William Addison walked to be the first student at Virginia Tech , and to commemorate this historic walk , the Caldwell March was begun . The march is broken into two hikes , the first are completed at the end of Red Phase , and Homer Hickam , whose life the movie October Sky is based upon , occasionally joins the cadets on this momentous hike . The hike begins at the Caldwell Homestead , which is still lived in today , and follows along parts of the Appalachian Trail , before ending at a park named after the Caldwell brothers . This usually takes place in October and the fall foliage adds to the spectacular views in marking the end of the arduous Red Phase . It is the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors ' policy , that any freshmen or transfer cadets who leave the corps before the end of Red Phase ( which is usually defined by the university ' s last day to drop classes in the fall semester and completion of the Caldwell March ) , must leave the university and begin again in the Spring ( they do not have to re - apply ) . White Phase . White Phase begins after the Caldwell March in October and lasts until the conclusion of Military Weekend in February . During White Phase , freshman cadets attend Cadet Leader School taught by the Commandant ' s Staff and upperclassman cadets . During the Thursday afternoon period reserved normally for the Corps of Cadets lab , freshmen are educated in leadership responsibilities and roleplay scenarios to learn solutions to different situations . Freshman cadets are evaluated during this time for their competence as Fire Team Leaders . White Phase normally terminates at the annual Military Ball during Military Weekend ( typically in the middle of February ) . At the beginning of Blue Phase , freshmen cadets are rewarded new privileges and continue in their transition from followership to leadership . Marking the end of freshmen year is the second phase of the Caldwell March . After successful completion of the march , the freshman cadets are " turned " to upperclassman status for the remainder of the year . During this period , the freshman cadets will be partially integrated into their future companies , providing them with valuable acclimation time in order to prepare themselves for their sophomore challenges .