Kent State University criminology sophomore Cadet Travis
Boyd trains on an obstacle course at the Litichoro Base
Camp in Greece.

This past summer, Kent State University criminology sophomore Cadet Travis Boyd and Executive Officer Major Aaron Mix represented the university at the Cultural Understanding and Language Proficiency (CULP) program in Greece.

CULP is designed to allow Army ROTC cadets to travel to different countries while representing the United States. Cadets have the opportunity to participate in humanitarian services, join the military-to military interaction or educate themselves in the social, cultural and historical aspects of the country. Boyd and Mix participated in the military-to-military opportunity.

The two were joined by 32 other cadets from 17 states and 23 universities nationwide. This is the first time CULP has had a mission that traveled to Greece. The program was 30-days long, beginning and ending in Fort Knox, Kentucky, where the cadets and instructors participated in examinations prior to and following the three-week trip to Greece.

While overseas, Boyd and the other cadets worked closely with cadets from Greece. They stayed at Hellenic Military Academy, which Boyd says is comparable to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

“Monday through Friday we stayed in tents at their military camp,” Boyd says. “We spent most of our time in the field so we had to have our full gear on us at all times, which was quite a struggle at first since it was about 90 degrees every day.”

Mix has been a part of Kent State’s ROTC program for three years. This was his first CULP mission. As the senior representative for the United States, he was the embassy and Greek liaison for the mission. He planned and oversaw the training for the joint exercise.

“We were able to do things there that we don’t do here,” Mix says. “Much of their training includes amphibious operations, something the United States Army doesn’t do. Landing on a beach engaging a notional enemy was a unique experience for our cadets.”

Both Mix and Boyd emphasized the importance of the professional and personal relationships they formed while in Greece.

“Everything was useful, from individuals benefiting from interpersonal relationships to the program sharing best practices of military-to-military experiences,” Mix says. “We’re making a personal and professional relationship with our Greek counterparts now as 19-year-olds, and I can’t tell you how important that is.”

The U.S. Embassy in Athens created a video titled American and Greek Cadets Train Together to Increase Cultural Understanding that features Mix and showcases cadet training. You can view it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1YnHkiD_ro.

For more information about the ROTC program at Kent State, visit http://www2.kent.edu/academics/rotc/.