Penn State Air Force ROTC to commission six cadets into service in January

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State Air Force Reserve Officers Training Corps Detachment 720 will commission six cadets into the U.S. Air Force as second lieutenants at 10:30 a.m. Jan. 8, 2021, during a livestreamed ceremony.

A link to the livestream is available here.

Air Force ROTC (AFROTC) at Penn State traces its history back to 1942 when services were assigned to Penn State for training during the U.S.’s early days in World War II. The Air Corps ROTC was renamed to Air Force ROTC in 1948, a year after the Air Force was established as a separate branch of the armed forces.

The six second lieutenants will go on to diverse careers in the Air Force such as pilot, aircraft maintenance, developmental engineering, combat rescue officer and space operations officer. Careers in the U.S. Air Force are designated through a number and letter system known as the Air Force Specialty Code (AFSC) and airmen and women are assigned to an Air Force base (AFB).

All six will also finish their college careers with a Penn State bachelor’s degree.

Ryan Gloeckner

Hometown: Shrewsbury, Pennsylvania
Hobbies: Reading, listening to music/podcasts, working on cars, video games
College major/minors: Aerospace Engineering, Military Studies
AFROTC Highlights: Playing pool, foosball and “Super Smash Bros.” with other cadets in the detachment after hours; attending the 2019 AFA Conference with Lt. Gemmel and Cadet Rogers, joining Arnold Air Society (AAS).
AFSC: 13S Space Operations Officer
First Base of Assignment: Vandenburg Air Force Base, California
Notable achievement: Gloeckner will also be among the first Air Force ROTC cadets to be directly commissioned into the newly created United States Space Force.

Luke Baer

Hometown: West Chester, Pennsylvania
Hobbies: Running, gaming, hockey
College Major: Aerospace Engineering
AFROTC Highlights: Earning a scholarship, going to field training, getting selected for Combat Rescue Officer (CRO)
AFSC: 13D Combat Rescue Officer (CRO)
Notable achievement: Baer competitively earned Air Force Special Forces designation of Combat Rescue Officer (CRO)

Alexandra Maldonado

Hometown: Drums, Pennsylvania
Hobbies: Running, reading
Your major/minors: Industrial Engineering
AFROTC Highlights: Meeting her husband in Air Force ROTC, Josh, who is now a commissioned second lieutenant; being a Cadet Training Assistance (CTA) at Field Training (FT) at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama; Being Cadet Wing Commander at Detachment 720; Earning the Spring 2020 Vice President's Award
AFSC: 38F Force Support Officer

Trey Barefoot

Hometown: Altoona, Pennsylvania
Hobbies: Playing golf and going hiking with his wife and two dogs
College major: Aerospace Engineering
AFROTC Highlights: President of Silver Wings; commander of Wild Blue Yonders; member of Scabbard and Blade; recipient of Society of American Military Engineers award, American Legion General Military Excellence Award, and National Defense Industrial Association Award
AFSC: 21A Aircraft Maintenance Officer

Jordan Sterner

Hometown: York, Pennsylvania
Hobbies: Anything outside really, including but not limited to hiking, biking, kayaking and camping; also enjoys working on/fixing cars in his free time
College Major: Mechanical Engineering
AFROTC Highlights: Getting the wing coin, spending time getting to know everybody and the comradery was the overall highlight of his time at Detachment 720
AFSC: 21M Munitions and Missile Maintenance Officer

Jonathan Hiroshi Rogers

Hometown: Clifton, Virginia
College major: Aerospace Engineering
AFROTC Highlights: Spending a spring break at Langley Air Force Base with some great people and riding shotgun in a T-38 jet, joining Arnold Air Society with “the best group of leaders ever”
AFSC: 92T Pilot/Navigator Trainee
First Base of Assignment: Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma

About AFROTC

Penn State Air Force ROTC is part of the Penn State Office of Undergraduate Education, the academic administrative unit that provides leadership and coordination for University-wide programs and initiatives in support of undergraduate teaching and learning at Penn State. Learn more about Undergraduate Education at undergrad.psu.edu.