Stellar Service

Another ‘Fighting Eagle’ instructor earns top honors

By Eastern Magazine

For the second year in a row, a faculty member serving with the Eastern Washington University Army ROTC “Fighting Eagles” battalion has received the U.S. Army Cadet Command Instructor of the Year Award.

Maj. Nicholas Carbaugh was selected for the award from among instructors in 274 ROTC units located across the country.

Carbaugh studied finance at Virginia Tech University before coming to Eastern. He is currently assigned to the field artillery branch of the EWU battalion, where he serves as lead instructor for third-year cadets preparing to attend Advanced Camp, a 31-day training event that is designed to assess cadets’ proficiency in basic officer leadership tasks.

Carbaugh also represents the Department of Military Science as its representative on EWU’s Academic Senate. As a senator, he is responsible for helping to formulate university policy and developing recommendations to be acted on by the Board of Trustees. Carbaugh also serves as treasurer of his local Montessori School Board.

“Maj. Carbaugh is clearly not only an outstanding instructor, but an important part of the university and the community,” writes Lt. Col. Jonathan Stafford, chair of the ROTC program, in an article on the EWU Army ROTC website.

Carbaugh’s award follows the Non-Commissioned Officer Instructor of the Year Award given to then Sgt. 1st Class Jason Henning in 2019. EWU Army ROTC is the only program in the nation that has won a total of three national Cadet Command awards for excellence in the past two years. Also in 2019, Human Resources Administrator Linda Moody won the award for the Top Cadet Command HRA.