If Buffalo is wondering where its emerging leaders will come from, at least five of them are at Hutchinson Central Technical High School.
While neither the Buffalo Bills – post AFL – nor the Buffalo Sabres have done it, the Hutch-Tech team has given the city a national champion by winning the 2021 U.S. Army JROTC Leadership Bowl. They did it by placing first among a huge field of 1,511 teams, demonstrating the type of leadership qualities any government, business or organization will covet.
After emerging from the qualifying rounds, they were among 40 teams that earned an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., last month, where they were victorious in the finals.
Like most competitors, they were confident going in – somewhat.
“I knew we would make it past Round 1. I was iffy on Round 2,” said Cadet Major Zoe Schenk, 17, who’ll be a senior in September. “Once we were eligible to make it to D.C., our attitude changed. We were in it to win.”
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Still, despite performing well at the finals on the campus of the Catholic University of America, they couldn’t be sure.
“We knew how we did, but were not too sure of how the other teams did,” Cadet Captain Anusha Adihikari, also 17 and a senior, said of the victory. “I didn’t totally expect it, but I expected it a little bit.”
But beyond the thrill of victory and the fun of visiting D.C., the team’s accomplishment demonstrates some of the good things going on in the Buffalo Public Schools and – provided the city can keep them – offers the prospect of soon-to-be leaders who can propel Western New York.
The competition included such head-scratching tasks as keeping a ball on a tarp with holes in each corner and in the middle, or trying to cross a simulated swamp without sinking.
But imbedded in such arcane challenges were the principles of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and the seeds of the type of leadership companies and organizations have come to value as they put more emphasis on breaking down cubicle walls and capitalizing on employee synergy.
As such, the competition taught Cadet 1st Lt. Noor Albadri that leadership “is not just you, it’s unity.
“You need to have people to be a leader,” the 16-year-old junior said. “I learned you need to have teamwork to make it work.”
For instance, in the swamp challenge, one member crossed first while another member watched her effort and memorized the pattern of how the felt pads simulating the bog were laid out.
“Every member of the team has something to bring to the table,” said Cadet Capt. LawBah Htoo, a 16-year-old senior who rounded out the team along with Cadet 2nd Lt. MahNer Soe, 16, who’ll be a junior.
Learning the value of being part of something bigger was especially rewarding for LawBah.
“I enjoy doing things by myself because then I can take responsibility for whether it’s good or bad,” LawBah said. But through the Leadership Bowl, he came to “enjoy the concept of teamwork and camaraderie.”
The five were among about 150 who take the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps elective at Hutch-Tech, according to 1st Sergeant Stephen Frazier, who teaches the course.
Anusha was drawn to it during freshman orientation when an ROTC veteran made a presentation and “his leadership, the posture he had, the smoothness he had” made a big impression. For Zoe, it was an attractive alternative to a career and financial management class, particularly since Frazier said the JROTC elective includes similar life skills in its curriculum. For LawBah, “it was the competitive aspect of beating my sister,” who had taken the course previously.
But whatever their motivation for joining, they all got a lot out of the experience and are confident that what they learned will carry over into their careers. As part of the competition, they studied the leadership styles of famed U.S. Gens. George C. Marshall, Douglas MacArthur and Colin Powell and then were quizzed on what they learned. The competition tested them on everything from decision-making, planning and team work to communications, problem-solving and cooperation.
As the preparatory materials put it, “Aim to be a problem solver. Though memorization will suffice, thinking, understanding, and problem solving will prove most beneficial to you now and throughout your lifetime.”
But it wasn’t all work. They also participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery and visited the National Mall.
In fact, enjoying the experience was one of the things the team talked about beforehand, Zoe said.
“If we didn’t win, and also didn’t go there to have fun, we would come back with nothing,” she said.
Instead, that attitude helped them come back with the championship trophy, giving Buffalo a victory on a national stage – and the promise of a brighter future at home thanks to five emerging leaders.
