Naval Science
Midshipmen at Holy Cross will leave the program with the highest ideals of duty, honor and loyalty as they develop under the college pillar of cura personalis, or care for the whole person.
Graduates leave with the capability to be commissioned as naval officers who possess a basic professional background, are motivated toward careers in the naval service, and have a potential for future development to reach the highest responsibilities of command, citizenship and government.
Take the Hill
The Crusader Battalion is composed of midshipmen across four different institutions dedicated to developing into the next generation of Navy and Marine Corps officers. Our unit proudly includes crosstown students from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester State University (WSU) and Brown University with our headquarters at the College of the Holy Cross.
Explore
Meet Our Commanding Officer
- Introduction to Naval Science
- Sea Power Leadership & Management
- Navigation (Navy only)
- Naval Operations (Navy only)
- Naval Engineering Systems (Navy only)
- Naval Weapons Systems (Navy only)
- Marine Corps Leadership (Marine option only)
- Evolution of Warfare (Marine option only)
- Leadership & Ethics
History
One of the oldest NROTC units in the country, the Holy Cross NROTC Unit has been established for over half a century. In May 1941, the Department of the Navy announced that the College of the Holy Cross was to be among twenty-seven colleges and universities selected to participate in the NROTC program.
The program was created fifteen years earlier to ensure commissioned naval service officers were available to meet unforeseen national emergencies. The unit was established at the College of the Holy Cross on July 14, 1941 with an enrollment of 115 freshmen.
During the ensuing years of World War II, Holy Cross alumni and faculty served their country in the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. Of the almost four thousand Crusader alumni who served in that conflict, one hundred and nine lost their lives in combat. Their names are inscribed on two commemorative scrolls in Saint Joseph’s Chapel, alongside those honoring similar sacrifices in World War I, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.
Honors for Alums
- 3 Medal of Honor recipients
- 4 Navy Cross recipients
- 19 Silver Star recipients
Medal of Honor Recipients
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CAPT Thomas G. Kelley
Awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism in the Vietnam War.
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CDR Joseph T O’Callahan
O’Callahan was the first Jesuit to be commissioned as a Navy chaplain in World War II and the first chaplain to receive the Medal of Honor. He was cited for his heroism aboard the USS Franklin.
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1st Lt John V. Power
Awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism in the Pacific theater in World War II.