CSUSB Students Honored During U.S. Air Force Commissioning Ceremony

SAN BERNARDINO >> Three alumni from California State University, San Bernardino received commissions as second lieutenants in the U.S. Air Force during an Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps Commissioning Ceremony at the Elks Lodge in San Bernardino. Edwin Cardenas, B.A. Arabic language, culture and literature; Megan Duenas, B.A. graphic design marketing; and Luigi C. Gomez, B.A. human and organizational communication received commissions. Among the three students were nine others from various schools including Elizabeth Beck, B.A. anthropology, University of California, Riverside; Scott Dvorak, B.A. environmental business, University of Redlands; Mikayla Mele, B.A. criminal justice, California Baptist University; and Julian Okey, B.S. physics, Cal Poly Pomona. CSUSB senior Jessica Zetina, B.A. criminal justice; and CBU senior Alexander Garland, B.S. mathematics, were given mock commissions while they await final medical clearance. There are currently 6,600 active duty USAF second lieutenants in bases around the country and the world. Lt. Col. Charles Peterson, commanding officer AFROTC Detachment 0002 CSUSB, coordinator and professor of the university’s aerospace studies department, said the newly commissioned officers will be stationed at bases around the country once they enter active duty. Peterson congratulated the students for completing and passing the rigorous four-year training program. The graduates rose to the top from a class of 32 that eventually ended with nine. “Today was the culmination of years of hard work above and beyond what the ‘normal’ college student experiences,” Peterson said. “Their drive and determination coupled with the intense desire to serve their country and protect our freedoms, all while attending college, and holding down a job along with having a personal life. It never fails to inspire.” While spending time to focus on their academic study, the ROT students took classes in leadership, ethics, management and national security. They also attended weekly physical training sessions and successfully completed Field Training, ROTC’s boot camp equivalent. For more informations, contact the Air Force ROTC program at Cal State San Bernardino at http://afrotc.csusb.edu/index.htm.