Introduction

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Welcome to Veterans and the ROTC at CMC. In honor of Claremont McKenna College’s 75th Anniversary, join us as we celebrate the College’s vibrant history through a series of exhibitions commemorating the historic milestones, achievements, and individuals who have shaped the College. Reflecting back on Claremont McKenna College’s modest origins will lead to perspectives on the College’s current success and will inform the College’s aspirations for the future. The sixth exhibition in the series, Veterans and the ROTC at CMC, examines the military history of Claremont McKenna College with a focus on the College's veteran students and faculty, the founding and lasting impact of the ROTC program on the CMC campus, and the Vietnam War era of the 1960s and 1970s through the lens of CMC and the larger Claremont Colleges consortium.

The Archives consulted a variety of sources in compiling this exhibit and are indebted to those historic resources, most notably, Commerce and Civilization, Claremont McKenna College: The First Fifty Years 1946-1996 by Kevin Starr, An Idea Becomes a College by Mabel Gibberd Benson, and the ROTC Archives at Claremont McKenna College.

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The archives contain historical documents, some of which include perspectives and language reflecting the time in which they were written. Claremont McKenna College does not endorse all the views expressed in these documents.