Cadet Of The Week: Adam A. Oliver

By Ms. Catrina DubianskyFebruary 18, 2020

Cadet Oliver with an alpaca
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Cadet Oliver with fellow Cadets
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Name: Adam Armstrong Oliver

School: University Of Maryland

Hometown: Cazenovia, NY

Major: Government and Politics (International Relations Focus)

From growing up on an Alpaca farm in Upstate New York, to becoming a UMD Army ROTC Cadet, Cadet Oliver does it all.

Cadet Oliver truly embodies the leadership attributes of intellect, character and presence. Along with being heavily involved with ROTC, Cadet Oliver is a member of the Honors College, holds a 4.0 GPA in his Military Science classes, and has made Dean's List all 8 of his semesters at UMD. Not to mention, Cadet Oliver is head of the University of Maryland Campus Farm Volunteers. This means he gets to hang out with the campus animals on a regular basis, and what is better than that?

As if Cadet Oliver wasn't outstanding enough, he has also created a tracking system for the ROTC program. Previously, there was no mechanism to ensure cadets returned equipment, so he has created a data base to track when equipment is signed out from, and returned to, the S4 shop. This will not only save the Battalion and the American taxpayer money, but it also improves training by ensuring necessary equipment is available when needed.

Aside from Cadet Oliver's high intellectual and leadership abilities, he is also physically tough. He consistently scores above average on the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) and is active in the local rock climbing community. As an avid rock climber, he is constantly pushing himself to the limit and always up for an adventure.

Cadet Oliver is always the first to volunteer, or lend a hand when his fellow Cadets need assistance, and with that he has really set an exceptional example of what being an Army ROTC Cadet should look like.

In The Cadet's Own Words:

Growing up, my father shared stories with my brother and I of his time serving in the Army. He had come from a lower-middle class family that had been hit hard by the depression. His father had served in the pacific as an anti-air gunner and, wanting to serve his country and attend college, he joined Army ROTC at Syracuse University.

What he learned during his time in ROTC and the Army molded him into the man I respect and the father I love. It is for these reasons that I joined ROTC and am motivated to become an Officer in the US Army. I joined to learn and grow as a person and to serve as my father and his father before him did.

Awards & Achievements:

-Advanced Camp Graduate

-CULP in Tanzania

-Cadet Troop Leader Training at Fort Bliss

-Studied abroad in the Netherlands

-Dean's list every semester

-Honors College Citation - Honors Humanities

Related Links:

University Of Maryland ROTC

Become A Leader - Join Army ROTC