2015 Palmetto Awards presented for excellence in leadership at The Citadel: Four Citadel presidents gather to present award to Joseph Trez

CHARLESTON, SC – They have distinguished themselves through their leadership and service to The Citadel, the community, and the state of South Carolina. Now they are among those who have received one of the college’s most elite recognitions, The Palmetto Award.

The Palmetto Medal Award was created by the college’s Board of Visitors to recognize cadets, faculty, staff or alumni for exceptional performance that reflects great credit on the college or the state of South Carolina. The Palmetto Medal is the second highest honor bestowed by the college. The first is an honorary degree. The awards were presented to the following four recipients during a Corps Day ceremony on March 14, 2015:

 

Cadet Colonel John C. Brosch

Cadet John Brosch is the regimental commander of the South Carolina Corps of Cadets. He is a senior majoring in education and will commission into the Army upon graduating. He was recognized for his performance when he received the Superior Cadet Decoration Award as well as the Cordell Airborne Ranger Scroll.  As captain of the lacrosse team, he led them to the regional playoffs.

Known as a quiet, but firm leader, Brosch has modeled the value of service to community. His service commitment includes the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the YMCA, the Chapel Color Guard, Burke High School, James Island Middle School and West Ashley High School.

Brosch, along with several other education majors, and Dr. Tammy Graham established the Student Disabilities Association of The Citadel, the first ever student club affiliated with the Learning Disabilities Association of America.

Brosch has earned Dean’s List recognition every semester throughout his cadet career, and he is a member of Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society.  Despite the demands of student teaching at James Island Charter High School and maintaining an exceptional academic record, Brosch has excelled in his role as regimental commander of the South Carolina Corps of Cadets.  (Brosch pictured with Allison Dean Love, Citadel Board of Visitors member.)

 

Colonel Joseph W. Trez, Sr., Class of 1969

Col. Joseph Trez is the executive director of the Krause Center for Leadership and Ethics. He is a combat veteran with a twenty-six year active duty military career that included infantry command at every level from platoon to brigade.  He served with the 4th Infantry Division in Vietnam, two tours of duty with both the 82nd Airborne Division and the 7th Infantry Division (Light), and he commanded the United States Army Training Center at Fort Benning, Georgia. He also served as a staff officer from the battalion level to service with the Department of the Army Staff in the Pentagon. He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and the U.S. Army War College.

In 1994, Trez returned to his alma mater to assume duties as a professor of military science and the commandant of cadets.  After serving as commandant, he took on an even greater challenge in his role as executive assistant to the president when he was tasked with overseeing the assimilation of women in the Corps of Cadets.  In 2007, he was named chief of staff, and in 2012, he assumed his current duties as executive director of the Krause Center for Leadership and Ethics.  In all of his roles, he was a faithful steward of The Citadel’s reputation and a source of strength.

All four of the college presidents Trez served during his time at The Citadel – Lt. Gen. John Rosa,

Lt. Gen. Claudius Watts, Major General John Grinalds, and Major General Cliff Poole− stood together on stage to present him with the Palmetto Award. (Pictured in top photo.)

 

Brigadier General Samuel M. Hines

Sam Hines, Ph.D., is provost and dean of the college. He came to The Citadel in 2007 from the College of Charleston where he served for 34 years in numerous positions, including founding dean of both the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and the School of Languages, Cultures and World Affairs; vice president for Departmental Affairs; and associate provost. During his tenure Hines has helped to lead the college to national prominence.

Under Hines’ direction, The Citadel was reaccredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools with no recommendations for improvement. He was also a driving force in increasing the number of student community service hours, an initiative that resulted in more principled leaders as noted on freshman and senior surveys.  The emphasis on community service was also instrumental in the award of the Carnegie Classification for Civic Engagement.

As a result of l Hines’ leadership, The Citadel has achieved the highest four-year graduation rates in the state of South Carolina.  Additionally, for four consecutive years the college has been ranked by U.S. News & World Report the number one college in the South for colleges offering up to a master’s degree. (Hines pictured on left with Lt. Gen. Michael Steele, Chairman of The Citadel Board of Visitors.)

 

Kevin M. Elmore, Class of 1974

For more than twenty years, Kevin Elmore, Class of 1974, has served as a role model  for good leadership for future cadets by hosting a dinner for them and their parents. Through a comprehensive three-hour orientation program he created called Knob Night, he explains to upcoming freshmen and their parents the significance of the Honor Code, the importance of physical fitness, and the value of studying The Guidon for cadet knowledge. Although this program is a function of The Greater Columbia Area Citadel Club, Elmore has taken on the responsibility of raising the funds to pay for the dinners.

Elmore has also mentored rising cadet seniors and young alumni regarding employment opportunities and has distributed their resumes and arranged for interviews to help them find jobs. He has visited Columbia area high schools where he talks to prospective students about the value of a Citadel education.

The Columbia Citadel Club has also benefitted from Elmore’s leadership.  He served as president twice, and since the 1980s, he has continuously served on the board of directors.  He served as director from the Midlands for The Citadel Alumni Association four times, and he chaired the Long Range Strategy Committee in the early 1990s. (Elmore pictured on left with Col. Fred Price, member of The Citadel Board of Visitors.)

 

About The Citadel

Charleston, South Carolina. The Citadel offers a classic military college education for young men and women profoundly focused on leadership excellence and academic distinction. Graduates are not required to serve in the military but about 30 percent of each class commission as officers in every branch of U.S. military service. Graduates of The Citadel have served the nation, their state and their communities as principled leaders since the college was founded in 1842. The Citadel Graduate College offers more than 50 Master’s degrees and graduate certificates in a wide range of disciplines, plus six undergraduate programs, through an all-evening schedule. Some graduate courses are available online.