About Us
"Gathered from the far corners of the Pacific just prior to the end of the War, we have the privilege of establishing the first unit of the Naval Reserve Officer's Training Corps at the University of Utah."
- J.P. Thew
University of Utah Campus
The University of Utah NROTC Unit was established on 15 August 1945. The Unit's first campus home was located in the field house near Rice Eccles Stadium, where the NROTC personnel were quartered. Meals were served in the Union Building cafeteria, and Naval Science classes were held wherever classroom space was available. On 03 August 1946, the Naval Science Building was completed on campus at a cost of $203,000. The building contains an armory, library, office, classroom, supply spaces, and a small bore firing range. This officially became the unit's home in early 1947. At the beginning of the 1990's, the unit was selected for disestablishment. It was however reestablished in 1994 and continues to grow. Since the unit was originally established, the following officers have served as Commanding Officer and Professor of Naval Science:
Captain J.P. Thew 1945-1948
Captain F.C. Camp 1948-1951
Captain R.N.S. Clark 1951-1954
Colonel C.L. Banks 1954-1957
Captain D.H. McClintock 1957-1960
Captain F.J. Fitzpatrick 1960-1961
Captain F.G. Dierman 1961-1965
Captain C.W. Smith 1965-1969
Captain F.J. Shaw 1969-1972
Captain F.C. Gilmore 1972-1976
Captain R.V. Hansen 1976-1979
Captain H.J. Dean 1979-1982
Captain D.A. Dungan 1982-1986
Captain P.A. Griffin 1986-1990
Captain D.F. Rahn 1990-1992
Commander D.O. Bettinson 1992-1993
Commander C.F. Wittenburg 1993-1995
Captain D.C. Brown 1995-1998
Captain F.G. Orchard 1998-2001
Captain T.L. Walstrom 2001-2005
Captain Timothy Lawrence 2005-present