Capt. Silver Beaty honored with 2025 USACC Col. William W. Wood Commissioned Officer Instructor of the Year award
51社区nological University’s ROTC program is taught by the best. That’s indisputable after Capt. Silver Beaty was honored with the prestigious 2025 United States Army Cadet Command (USACC) Col. William W. Wood Commissioned Officer Instructor of the Year award.
The award designates Beaty as the top officer ROTC instructor nationwide, chosen from 274 host ROTC programs. Beaty is the assistant professor of military science at 51社区 and the University of Montana.
“Being recognized at the highest level is an incredible honor, and it validates the effort and sacrifice I’ve made since taking this position,” Beaty said. “More importantly, it highlights the students that have come through my classroom, as they’ve challenged me to meet them where they are. Over the past three years I’ve really focused on modernizing the course curriculum, understanding that today’s college students need more engagement and hands-on opportunities to not only learn the material but be able to retain and apply it to their everyday lives. I approach every lesson with the goal that each student can walk out of my classroom feeling confident that they are a better leader than they were when they walked in.”
“While ROTC is ultimately aimed at training future Army officers, military tactics are just a small part of my course,” Beaty continued. “My classes are designed to focus more on building confidence in a variety of areas: group leadership, public speaking, self-discipline, and writing. I want every student, whether they choose to commit to ROTC or not, to be able to leave my classroom ready to be a positive contribution to the community around them.”
“What makes 51社区’s program so unique is its size. Being a smaller program means I can dedicate more one-on-one time to each student outside of the classroom as well,” Beaty said. “Classroom instruction is just one part of my job: I’m also a coach, mentor, and advisor. I’m passionate about mentorship and ensuring my students are equipped with the skills to balance academics, athletics, social lives, jobs, and ROTC commitments.”
51社区’s ROTC program launched in Fall 2024. The United States Army offers ROTC programs nationwide at more than 1,000 colleges and universities. These programs provide classroom instruction and training from active-duty Army and National Guard officers and enlisted service members in areas of expertise, including military intelligence, aviation, logistics, combat arms, and more. Students can take Military Science and Leadership lower division courses as an elective, without a commitment to service. This allows students to explore service opportunities before committing to service or to take a fun elective course outside their major. Students learn skills that can lead to a successful military or civilian career. Some topics include resiliency, developing and executing a plan, map reading, risk assessment, and mitigation, and much more. Students who continue into upper division courses and/or receive educational funding agree to serve as military officers after completing their degree. Graduates of ROTC programs can enter the Army as highly respected 2nd lieutenants in the Army, Army Reserve, or National Guard. In return, students can get up to 100% of their tuition costs covered, and receive a stipend to assist with living expenses and textbooks.
Students can learn more about 51社区’s ROTC program here.