When I was asked to Chair the Campaign Steering Committee for the Corp of Cadets, I was honored but wanted to fully understand today's Corps to know what I was supporting. Meeting the staff and cadets, I quickly learned that today's Corps is far superior in every way than the one I experienced in O Squadron, class of ‘62. Today, perhaps more than ever, America needs leaders of exemplary character and integrity who are dedicated to a cause greater than themselves. Such leaders are needed in every walk of life, and that is exactly what is being produced by our Corps. Our Corps is recognized for its quality by the armed services and we can be proud of the fact that we have the highest percentage of graduates commissioned each year of all of the senior military colleges, proud of the fact that our cadets excel in the various summer training camps, and proud that we commission more officers into the Navy than any other Naval ROTC program in the country. But the Corps does much more that produce outstanding military officers; it produces outstanding leaders in all walks of life. We all know how hard it is to gain admission to Virginia Tech today. It is important to realize that the Corps is focused on its cadets' academic success. Typically by junior and senior year cadets will have QCA's above their civilian counterparts. Support is available to all cadets to include academic officers on the company level and tutors brought in to assist students in math and the sciences. But to me, the ultimate testimony to the quality produced by the Corps (which constitutes about 3% of the student body) is that for the past five years a cadet has been named the Virginia Tech Undergraduate Leader of the Year. VT cadets are outstanding individuals who deserve our support, and I am proud to be a part of the team that is dedicated to providing that support. Get to know today's Corps and its cadets and I know you will be proud to become part of this team.