EWU ROTC Cadet Receives 2019 Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship

The 2019 Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship was issued this week to Cadet Kylie Crooks.  Kylie is an incoming MS-IV Cadet with the Eastern Washington University (EWU) Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program.  The scholarship is in honor of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity’s EWU chapter co-founder First Lieutenant Randy Turner.  Randy was a 1968 graduate from the EWU ROTC program who was a recipient of the Silver Star and was killed in action in 1969 during the Vietnam War.

Cadet Kylie Crooks (center) is pictured with members of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity and the EWU Professor of Military Science.


This year his fraternity brothers decided to honor his service by establishing an ROTC scholarship program.  The scholarship is awarded to EWU ROTC Cadets that demonstrate academic excellence, high physical fitness, leadership, and financial need.  Through a board process, Cadet Crooks was chosen as our second 2019 Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship recipient.  Cadet Crooks is studying nursing and is on pace to graduate with honors.  She has also shown a high level of physical fitness by scoring a maximum 300 on her Army Physical Fitness Test.

Kylie also recently completed ROTC Advanced Camp where she received the highest rating of “Outstanding”.  Besides being a Cadet, Kylie also serves as a watercraft engineer in the U.S. Army Reserve’s 467th Transportation Company.

Cadet Crooks after completing a 12-mile road march.


The scholarship worth $7,545 will pay her full tuition next year as she pursues her nursing degree and a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army.  Congratulations to Cadet Crooks for being awarded the Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship and a big thank you to Pi Kappa Alpha for sponsoring this scholarship in support of our outstanding EWU ROTC Cadets.

Go ROTC!  Go Fighting Eags!

How to Apply for A 2020 Army ROTC National Scholarship

The 2020 Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) National Scholarship season has begun.  Army ROTC National Scholarships are for qualified high school seniors planning to attend a four-year university and are interested in training to become a future officer in the U.S. Army.  If you have already graduated high school please contact the Eastern Washington University (EWU) ROTC office because we have other scholarship options available.

EWU ROTC Cadets from the class of 2019 commission as officers into the U.S. Army.


ROTC National Scholarship Requirements

  • Be a U.S. citizen
  • Be between the ages of 17 and 26
  • Have a high school GPA of at least 2.50
  • Have a high school diploma or equivalent
  • Score a minimum of 1000 on the SAT (math/verbal) or 19 on the ACT (excluding the required writing test scores)
  • Meet physical standards
  • Agree to accept a commission and serve in the Army on Active Duty or in a Reserve Component (Army Reserve or Army National Guard)

If you meet the basic requirements, below are the instructions on how to apply for a ROTC National Scholarship.  You can get about 75% of the application completed in under an hour.

ROTC National Scholarship Process:

Step #1: You need to complete an on-line application that you can access through this link.  Applicants must initiate the on-line application by 4 February 2020. Remember your login and password for your cadet portal. Your login is the email you use to establish your account.

Step #2: Submit high school transcripts (at least through junior year) and SAT or ACT scores. You can upload PDFs through your account in the Cadet portal.

Step #3: Take the ROTC Basic Fitness Test.  A coach or PE teacher can administer this for you.

Step #4: Conduct an interview at one of the university ROTC programs (ideally where your first choice of college is).  We can do this any time here at Eastern after you start the on-line application. We are more than willing to conduct a Skype interview if you live several hours away.  Please reach us through our Contact page or call 509-359-6110 to setup an interview.


ROTC National Scholarship Timeline

The Army understands high school students could still be in the process of taking SATs and ACTs during their senior year.  Because of this the Army has three different boards that meet throughout the year to select ROTC scholarship winners.  Below is the board timeline.

1st Board

(Note: The first board dates were moved up to December, they were originally in October)

02 December 2019:  All four steps listed above must be completed on the GoArmy site before this date to be considered by the first board.  The application will not be considered if any of the steps are not completed.  A benefit of completing the ROTC packet in time for the first board is that even if your packet is not selected it will be looked at again by the second and third boards thus increasing your chances of receiving a scholarship.

09 December 2019:  This is the date that the first board convenes and reviews every packet that was submitted by the 02 December 2019 deadline.

2nd Board

28 December 2019:  All four steps listed above must be completed on the GoArmy site before this date to be considered by the second board.  The application will not be considered if any of the steps are not completed.  A benefit of completing the ROTC packet in time for the second board is that even if your packet is not selected it will be looked at again by the third board thus increasing your chances of receiving a scholarship.

13-17 January 2020:  This is the date that the second board convenes and reviews every packet that was submitted by the 06 January 2019 deadline.

4 February 2020:  This is the deadline to initiate new 2019-2020 ROTC scholarship applications.  If an application is not initiated by1159pm EST it will not be considered by the final board. Those who already have an application open can continue to modify it passed this deadline.

4 March 2020:  This is the deadline to complete all edits to your online ROTC scholarship application.  All edits must be complete by1159pm EST.  After this date you will only be able to upload supporting documentation.

3rd Board

09 March 2020:  All four steps listed above must be completed on the GoArmy site before this date to be considered by the third board.  The application will not be considered if any of the steps are not completed.

23-27 March 2020:  Board convenes and runs until every packet that was board ready by the start of the board, has been reviewed.

Please view the below video for more information about submitting an ROTC scholarship application.


ROTC Scholarship Selection

Selection for ROTC scholarships are highly competitive and at EWU ROTC we recommend getting your application complete and seen in time for the second board.  The majority of scholarships are issued from the second and third boards and getting the application complete by the second board will increase your chances of receiving a scholarship.  Decisions on the scholarships awarded are usually released two to four weeks after each board.  Periodically check the Selection Status tab on your GoArmy application to see if you were selected.

2019 ROTC National Scholarship recipient to Eastern Washington University received scholarship benefits worth $77,000.


If you were not selected after the third board do not give up hope of receiving a scholarship.  There is a secondary process for applicants to earn a scholarship. Any  ROTC program can make an alternate offer to applicants that were not offered a national award. We get most of our new, incoming freshman on scholarships using this alternate process. Applying for the national scholarship is simply the first step. It is very simple and easy for us to make an alternate offer, but you first have to put together the ROTC application.

Please contact the EWU ROTC office for any additional details about how the scholarship selection process works.


Follow EWU ROTC

Keep up-to-date on all the latest news and notes from the EWU ROTC program and Cadet Command in general by subscribing to our website using the sign up widget in the right sidebar.  You can also follow EWU ROTC at the below social media channels:

Remember if you have any questions about the ROTC National Scholarship process, please leave a comment, contact our office, or reach out to us through our social media sites.  We are here to help and want you to be as successful as possible to receive an Army ROTC scholarship.

Go ROTC!  Go Fighting Eags!

Eastern Washington University ROTC Cadet Awarded Minuteman Scholarship Worth $46,200

The Eastern Washington University (EWU) U.S. Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) battalion is pleased to announce that one of its Cadets, Patrick Coleman has been awarded a Minuteman Scholarship worth $46,200.

EWU ROTC Cadet, Patrick Coleman


Cadet Coleman who is originally from Spokane, is a sophomore studying Finance at EWU.  He has excelled in the classroom by maintaining over a 3.5 Grade Point Average and shown strong leadership potential as a Cadet in the ROTC program.  Besides being a Cadet, Patrick also serves in the U.S. Army Reserves with the 659 Engineer Company located at Fairchild Air Force Base.  After graduating from EWU, Cadet Coleman will commission as a Second Lieutenant into the U.S. Army Reserve.

The Minuteman Scholarship program is one of many scholarship programs offered through the EWU ROTC program.  The Minuteman Scholarship is for college students interested in Guaranteed Reserve Forces Duty (GRFD).  The Minuteman Scholarship pays for full tuition and fees or $10,000 for room and board per year.  Minuteman Scholarship recipients also receive a monthly stipend of $420, and a yearly book allowance of $1,200.  All students that accept a Minuteman Scholarship will commission as an officer into the U.S. Army Reserves.  Anyone interested in pursuing any of our ROTC scholarship programs should contact the EWU ROTC office for more information.

Congratulations to Cadet Coleman on being awarded the Minuteman Scholarship!

Go ROTC!  Go Fighting Eags!

EWU ROTC Cadet Awarded the First Annual Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship

This week a Cadet from the Eastern Washington University (EWU) Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) was awarded the first Randy Van Turner ROTC scholarship.  The scholarship is in honor of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity’s EWU chapter co-founder First Lieutenant Randy Turner.  Randy Turner was a 1968 graduate from the EWU ROTC program who was a recipient of the Silver Star and in 1969 was killed in action during the Vietnam War.  This year his fraternity brothers decided to honor his service by establishing an ROTC scholarship program.  The scholarship is awarded to EWU ROTC Cadets that demonstrate academic excellence, high physical fitness, leadership, and financial need.

Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity members present Cadet Samantha Knight with a scholarship check that covers one year of tuition. 


Through a board process Cadet Samantha Knight was chosen as the first Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship recipient.  Cadet Knight is a junior (MS-III) Cadet studying nursing who maintains a near 3.9 GPA.  Besides being a Cadet, she is also a combat medic in the U.S. Army Reserve.  The scholarship will pay her full tuition next year as she pursues her nursing degree and a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army.

Next month we will announce our second 2019 Randy Van Turner ROTC Scholarship awardee, but congratulations to Cadet Knight and big thank you to Pi Kappa Alpha for sponsoring this scholarship in support of our outstanding EWU ROTC Cadets.

EWU ROTC Cadet Selected as A Finalist for the Harry Truman Scholarship

Eastern Washington University (EWU) student and ROTC Cadet Nicholas Null, has been selected as a finalist for the Harry Truman Scholarship.  Cadet Null was one of five college students selected from Washington State as a finalist for the scholarship.  Cadet Null is a MS-III (junior) Cadet in the university’s Fighting Eagles ROTC battalion.


Cadet Nicholas Null


The Harry Truman Foundation was created by Congress in 1975 based on the original idea from President Truman of having a scholarship that would support future generations who answer the call to public service.  Public service by becoming an Army officer is what Cadet Null is currently working towards in the EWU ROTC program.  However, becoming a military lawyer is Cadet Null’s ultimate goal and receiving this scholarship will bring him one step closer to attending law school as a graduate student.

Next up for Cadet Null is that he will be interviewed at a Harry Truman Foundation office in Seattle next month along with other Finalists from the Pacific Northwest.  The Finalists with the best interviews will be offered a scholarship to attend a graduate school of their choice.  The Fighting Eagles are very proud of Cadet Null being selected as a Finalist and wish him all the best next month as he conducts his final interviews to compete for the scholarship.

Go ROTC!  Go Fighting Eags!