Nola Reporter

Hundreds of Naval Reserve Officers (ROTC) Training Corps midshipmen and cadets from across the nation will assemble on the Tulane University uptown campus to compete in the annual Tulane Naval ROTC Mardi Gras Drill Meet on Friday, Feb. 17.

This year’s meet will include drill teams from 26 universities nationwide.The drill meet will take place from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with some public events on Berger Family Lawn and Brown Field. The community is encouraged to attend and watch those events. Parts of the drill meet that will take place in Yulman Stadium are not open to the public.

Teams will be judged on their skills for color guard, platoon drills and armed exhibition. According to LT Jonathan French, Tulane NROTC assistant professor of naval science, midshipmen and cadets have been training for the past 12 months for the meet.

“Tulane NROTC prides itself in having a long history of hosting the premier ROTC drill meet,” French said. “Our program is one of the oldest NROTC units in the nation, having been founded in 1938, and we remain one of the best units to this day.”  

Tulane’s NROTC unit received the Department of Defense ROTC and Educational Institution Partnership Excellence Award for exceptional performance during the 2019-2020 academic year. Among its many acknowledgements for the award, the unit was recognized for its partnership with local and regional groups, including hosting the Junior ROTC Drill Meeting and the annual Mardi Gras Drill Meet.

“The military and ROTC programs, in particular, place a great value in the training and execution of drill evolutions because these events require teamwork and coordination — skills vital for future military officers,” French said.

In the event of light rain, the event will continue as planned, with rain delays planned in the event of more inclement weather. 

The drill meet has been hosted by Tulane NROTC since 1973. There have been only two times when the event did not take place — during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and the year following Hurricane Katrina.

Visit the Tulane NROTC website for more information.

Original source can be found here.