ALUMNI CLUB

ALUMNI CLUB

Bison Battalion Alumni Newsletter

February 2021
Prepared by MS4 Staff

DOWNLOAD PDF >

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Our Alumni Spotlight for the month is Second Lieutenant James Schell. 2Lt. Schell commissioned as an Infantry Officer in the Indiana National Guard on 25 February 2021. He is the first Officer to commission in person since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. He reports to Fort Benning, GA for Infantry Basic Officer Leadership Course this coming June. We are extremely proud of him and we look forward to seeing where the Army takes him. Congratulations 2Lt. Schell.

FEBRUARY TRAINING EVENTS
This past month, the Bison Battalion returned to in-person training. We held our first in-person PT on Tuesday, February 9th and we are very excited to be conducting PT as a Battalion with strict social distancing and COVID-19 regulations in place. PT is conducted Monday through Thursday every week. During the online period, we conducted a platoon competition to see who could rack up the most miles in exchange for a day off of PT. The MSIV class won by a significant margin followed by 1 Alpha.

In the past several weeks, the Bison Battalion has conducted a D&C refresher lab, an individualized tactical lab by MS Class, and an Attack lab. Our Attack lab used paintball guns and the Cadets enjoyed simulating a tactical environment throughout the lab. We also spent the month of February preparing for a diagnostic Army Combat Fitness Test and settling into the semester.

MSIV Cadets
The MSIV cadets are busy preparing to commission as Second Lieutenants this coming May. Some of our active-duty Cadets have been told when they are reporting to BOLC and are awaiting their duty station assignments. We have secured IU Football Coach Tom Allen as the guest speaker at our commissioning ceremony, which is currently scheduled to be in-person. Cadet Nick Rallo was distinguished as Cadet of the Week for helping to secure our guest speaker. Thank you to him for his hard work. Cadet Noah Franklin also led the MSIV class for mileage during our platoon competition at the beginning of the month.

MSIII Cadets
The MSIII Cadets are busy preparing for their required Cadet Summer Training this summer. They have been rotating through leadership roles in both garrison and tactical environments. Several MSIIIs that distinguished themselves in February were Cadets Kyle Mattix, Garrett Hughes, Kelsey Begley, Emma Valeri, Hunter Menser and Isaac Conger. Thank you to these six cadets for setting the standard and leading from the front.

MSII Cadets
The MSII Cadets have been hard at work serving the Battalion as Team Leaders. Their leadership helped the Bison Battalion to start the semester on a positive note! An MSII that distinguished herself this month was Cadet Sara Grossniklaus. Keep up the good work, Sara.

MSI Cadets
The MSIs have been working hard to improve their fitness! Cadets Pehrson Timmons and Garett Lohnes were chosen as standout cadets this past month because they had the highest mileage in their respective platoons during our platoon distance competition. Congratulations to these two.

MILITARY HISTORY
Battle of Inchon
By: CDT Jackson Hopkins

Each week, the MSIV class researches an interesting piece of military history in order to further develop as future Army leaders. This month, CDT Jackson Hopkins wrote a short description about the Battle of Inchon.

Army General Douglas MacArthur led a military campaign that is considered “one of the most successful military operations of modern times.” The battle started on September 15, 1950 and ended shortly thereafter on September 19, 1950.

The summer prior to the Battle of Inchon, General MacArthur decided he needed troop movement behind enemy lines in order to degrade the North Korean army. General MacArthur originally planned the Inchon landing for July; however, problems caused him to abandon his original plan.. This large-scale operation was heavily debated as the landing sites General MacArthur chose were heavily defended. General MacArthur debated the enemy would not expect an attack at these locations —and he was right. On September 15, U.S. X Corps attacked “Green Beach” on the northern side of the island.

This invasion caused the NKPA to send forces to Kunsan where they anticipated the next invasion to occur, leaving only a small contingent of defenses at Inchon. This miscalculation by the North Korean army resulted in an actual surprise attack on Inchon (as MacArthur had expected).

The next phases of the Inchon landing were on “Red Beach” and “Blue Beach.” The “Red Beach” forces scaled the sea walls and opened up the causeway, allowing tanks from the “Green Beach” to enter the battle resulting in a full takeover. The next group of forces took over “Blue Beach.” The NKPA surrendered and did not oppose the “Blue Beach” forces upon invasion. This landing allowed for troops to continue to push inland, eventually leading to the Battle of Seoul in late September.

This risky but successful battle is considered a turning point of the Korean War. The invasion allowed UN and US forces to push the NKPA back north but ultimately this success resulted in Chinese support of the NKPA and eventually an armistice.

– END –