Honor • Duty • Respect - The Citadel

tactical officers; Col. Mark Bebensee, the associateprovost; the cadet regimental commander; and Col.Leo Mercado, the commandant of cadets. All I couldthink about was whether my uniform was in orderand whether I should have gotten a haircut. Thecommandant asked questions about my cadet careerand the rank positions that interested me. He asked mythoughts about some of the current problems facingcadets. At the end of the interview, he encouraged meto consider accepting a regimental position because hethought I would be a solid candidate.Later that week Col. Bebensee offered me theregimental academic officer position. It would be, hesaid, a great experience for me. When I expressedconcern about time constraints imposed by basketball,he reassured me that people would be able to help me ifI needed it.I was a little intimidated at first. I knew this newposition would require me to test my limits, but Irealized that it would be a good experience and anopportunity to grow, so I accepted.As regimental academic officer, I oversaw the academicperformance of all 20 companies as well as the battalionstaff from each of the five battalions. I was one of thetop nine—the nine highest ranked cadets on campuswho meet with the president bimonthly. I coordinatedand helped implement all academic policies withthe associate dean, and I oversaw the class absencesystem. Most importantly, I was in charge of supervisingthe academic progress of every cadet and providingassistance to those who were struggling. This positionwas one of the highest awarded to an intercollegiateathlete, and it was a stepping stone in bridging the gapbetween athletes and other cadets. For me, it was afulfilling opportunity and a fitting end to my four yearsas a cadet.During my career at The Citadel, I was presented witha great range of opportunities, most of which wouldnot have been available to me if I had attended anothercollege. With its structure and its discipline and all ofits demands, The Citadel is not the right fit for everycollege-bound student, but for those students whoseek a challenge, who are not afraid of hard work andwho want to succeed, The Citadel will exceed theirexpectations, test their stamina and make them intoleaders.Phillip Pandak earned Dean’s List all eight semesters andGold Stars for six semesters. He graduated in May witha degree in business administration.32 The Citadel 2011