Welcome
Hello! And welcome to the Robert G. Cole Cougar Battalion Webpage. Here, cadets can find resources needed for success in the battalion and can view the various achievements and going-ons of the battalion.
The Cougar Battalion continues a legacy of excellence stretching back 53 years to the initial creation of the program. The battalion leads the charge nationwide, as it is one of the highest performing JROTC programs nationwide. Located on Fort Sam Houston, the Cougar Battalion has been designated as an Honor Unit, a title reserved for only the top performing programs in the nation. The program helps students to discover and improve leadership, communication, and teamwork skills within classroom instruction, physical activity, and the variety of extracurriculars offered by the battalion. The program emphasizes leadership by students, helping cadets to improve themselves and learn from those they lead. Outside of the classroom, the program offers other opportunities for students to engage themselves in JROTC, including Color Guard, PT Team, Marksmanship, and Sabre Guard. These extracurriculars help to instill discipline and attention to detail within cadets, while fostering esprit de corps and teamwork along the way.
The Cougar Battalion itself helps to exemplify the Seven Army Values of:
Loyalty: Cadets find the importance of loyalty in the program through loyalty to one’s company, squad, and to the nation through citizenship knowledge and team building events. Furthermore, officers and staff find loyalty to those they command, and work hard to be able to help them out in any capacity. Loyalty is one of the key traits developed with cadets during their time in the program, which allows them to work better with a team and improve cadets overall.
Duty: Throughout the many facets of the JROTC Program, Duty is instilled within cadets as they carry out their actions in accordance with the responsibilities given to them. Activities outside of classroom instruction such as color guard, marksmanship, PT Team, and Sabre guard help to give responsibilities to the cadets who participate in the program, teaching them to fulfill what is required of them and thus instill a sense of duty within the cadet.
Respect: Inherent to the Organization is the foundation of respect. Cadets learn the value of respect when communicating with officers and staff, and respect overall allows better communication to occur within the battalion. Respect is present from the relationship between squad and squad leader, NCO and Officer, Commander and First Sergeant, all the way up to the relationship between the Executive Officer, Command Sergeant Major, and Battalion Commander. Additionally, events such as the military ball, veterans day ceremony, spring awards ceremony, and change of command help to instill a respect for the program’s institutions and formalities, allowing cadets to better understand the importance of such events.
Selfless Service: Within the program, the importance of selfless service is stressed in all of the parts of the program. The importance of those who have performed selfless service in the past is stressed throughout classroom instruction such as the namesake of the school Robert G. Cole, and is also seen in the commitment exhibited by cadets who sacrifice free time and other activities to help out the program. Additionally, Opportunities such as Volunteer events for food banks, Color guard events for Naturalization Ceremonies, and Other events where cadets help out others in the community on the behalf of JROTC help to show how the value of selfless service helps to benefit our cadets and thus the communities they are apart of.
Honor: Activities such as flag detail, Funeral Paul Bearing, or Sabre Guard, Cadets will learn how to honor those in their community and realize the importance of such activities. Events such as the Battalion Veterans Day ceremony and Change of Command teach cadets the importance of honoring the traditions of the military and the JROTC Program, with inspections carried out by the Battalion Commander and Command Sergeant Major showcasing the importance of honoring those in leadership and those who have come before you.
Personal Courage: In everything cadets do in the program, they are taught to have courage in themselves and in their team. Cadets face many challenges throughout the program, and the courage taught to them helps them to accept these challenges and rise above them.
Thank you for visiting the JROTC Web Page!
The Cougar Battalion
Committed to Excellence
