Marines Training Tests Students at National Leadership Academy
 

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Marines Training Tests Students at National Leadership Academy


DANIEL PEREZ | FEB. 14 2014 | UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS.

Joe Castellon from Texas State University in San Marcos, left, takes land navigation tips from 2nd Lt. Jose Valle, a reserve support officer with Marine Corp Recruiting Command, in the arroyo next to Union Building East on Feb. 6 as part of the MAES Leadership Academy that involved more than 50 students from 20 institutions, including UTEP. Photo by Ivan Pierre Aguirre / UTEP News Service
Joe Castellon from Texas State University in San Marcos, left,
takes land navigation tips from 2nd Lt. Jose Valle, a reserve
support officer with Marine Corp Recruiting Command, in the
arroyo next to Union Building East on Feb. 6 as part of the MAES
Leadership Academy that involved more than 50 students from 20
institutions, including UTEP.
Photo by Ivan Pierre Aguirre / UTEP News Service
 

Students from 20 colleges and universities across the country left their comfort zones and entered the arroyo next to UTEP's Union Building East to learn about life, leadership and adaptability, courtesy of some U.S. Marines.

The simple land navigation course was among the team-building exercises during the 25th annual MAES Leadership Academy at The University of Texas at El Paso Feb. 5-8, titled "Celebrating Leadership and Beyond."

The 50 participants, including several UTEP students, are members of MAES: Latinos in Science and Engineering chapters. The intensive four-day experience enhanced the students' management and communication skills. It concluded with an awards dinner.

The arroyo challenge tested the participants' mental and physical abilities. It involved understanding instructions, assuming roles as leaders and followers, adapting to changing scenarios, and working as a team while under physical and emotional duress. In other words, it was preparing them for life.

"You can try to find the perfect plan, but nothing is ever perfect," Capt. Ryan Strehl told one of his groups after they completed a task that included using a Lensatic compass to maneuver through the arroyo, locating and moving weighted items, and carrying an 'injured' teammate to safety on a makeshift stretcher. "No plan survives first contact. You have to be ready to adapt. Life is all about adapting."

Student participants from institutions in Texas, Arizona and California told Strehl the fun, but rigorous experience forced them to think on their feet, make decisions in real time, be aggressive and be ready to lead.

"It works your mind in ways a classroom never could," said Joe Castellon, vice president of outreach at his local MAES chapter and electrical engineering major at Texas State University in San Marcos.

The Marines, one of the academy's sponsors, wanted to plant the seed among the talented students that their skills would be valued as commissioned Marine officers, said Marine Lt. Col. Raphael Hernandez, an El Paso native and first-generation college student who earned his bachelor's in business management from UTEP in 1991.

Hernandez, national director of advertising with the corps' Recruiting Command, hoped his participation would inspire a few students to consider a different path to success, and serve their community regardless.

"Leadership skills are essential for success in the 21st century," said Hernandez, clad in his officer dress uniform.

The land navigation exercise and a Friday Zumba session were ways organizers tried to de-stress the students who endured 18-hour days filled with challenges, competitions, workshops, panel discussions and networking sessions. Few participants went to sleep before 1 a.m.

Mike Acosta, a Workforce Solutions Upper Rio Grande STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) consultant and the academy's co-chair, was excited about the level of talent at the academy and grateful the students were able to take advantage of UTEP's Career Connections 2014 job fair. The longtime IBM engineer said the students met with representatives of ExxonMobil, Lockheed Martin, the CIA and other organizations interested in future interns and employees.

"These students are the cream of the crop," said Acosta, a former national MAES president who nominated UTEP to host the event as part of the campus' Centennial Celebration. The year 2014 is the 40th anniversary of MAES, which originally was an acronym for the Mexican American Engineering Society.

Among those attending the leadership academy was Magdalena Angulo, vice president of internal affairs in UTEP's MAES chapter and civil engineering major. She attended the 2012 academy in Houston and served as a volunteer liaison this year. She called her academy experience "tiring and exciting" and credited it for opening many doors for her.

"I'm here because I wanted to learn more," said Angulo, an El Paso native whose father owns an engineering firm in Juárez, Mexico. Her goal is to open a branch of her father's business in the United States. "That academy made me conscious of the things I could do to strengthen my leadership skills."

Paloma Zamarripa, vice president of UTEP's MAES chapter and a civil engineering major, was one of four UTEP students selected to participate in the academy. She said she looks forward to sharing what she learned with her UTEP peers.

"You gain so much experience and it all comes in handy," Zamarripa said.