CMU cadet Joseph Graffeo among the best in the nation

Central Michigan University senior Joseph Graffeo of Lake Orion will be joining the ranks of the U.S. Army’s elite Dec. 15 when he is appointed as an aviation officer during CMU’s commencement ceremony. Graffeo finished his ROTC assessment as one of the top cadets in the nation.

 

Graffeo, a finance major, joined CMU’s ROTC program in 2010. Becoming an officer required many leadership training courses and physical fitness evaluations, including the U.S. Army fitness test and the ROTC leadership development and assessment course.  Graffeo finished 21st out of 6,300 cadets who were assessed this year, placing him in the top 1 percent in the nation.

 

“Cadet Joseph Graffeo has done an absolutely outstanding job in the ROTC Program here at CMU,” says Lt. Col. Greg Thayer, chairman of CMU’s military science department. “He just gets it. He understands that by ensuring your peers and subordinates are successful, you’ll be successful, and more importantly the U.S. Army will be successful.”

 

Aviation officers coordinate and lead military operations using U.S. Army helicopters. Military operations include hauling troops, carrying supplies, and providing quick-strike and long-range target engagement. Graffeo will begin job training in aviation school in January, where he will begin his studies with rotary-winged aircrafts and basic flying skills.

 

Graffeo says, after years of hard work with ROTC, being appointed as an officer is as rewarding as it is liberating.

“Imagine being trapped for 18 years behind a locked door that keeps you from doing something you love and then someone gives you a key,” Graffeo said. “That’s what this feels like.”

 

There are more than 150 flag officers with CMU degrees across all branches of military service. CMU, a veteran-friendly university as announced by “GI Jobs and Military Advanced Education,” has consistently been a leader in serving America’s military with more than 400 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs. CMU currently plays a role in the education of 1,062 veterans, including 831 global campus students and 231 on-campus students. Graffeo says he admires how welcoming CMU is toward soldiers and veterans.

 

“I’ve had the pleasure to meet veterans from CMU who fought in Afghanistan and Iraq,” Graffeo said. “Veterans always say CMU not only accepts, but embraces them. That kind of support can be hard to find.”

 

Graffeo also received the George C. Marshall and William Award for communicating the leadership principles of U.S. Army Gen. George Marshall: candor, commitment, courage, integrity and selflessness.

 

Graffeo will receive his appointment as a U.S. Army aviation officer during CMU’s 9 a.m. commencement ceremony Dec. 15 in McGuirk Arena.