People of Eastern: A student discusses the challenges of balancing schoolwork, ROTC and more.

Although Valley Forge Military Academy is right up the road, William Livezey is the only freshman at Eastern University who is apart of ROTC. When asked what inspired him to join, he said that he was greatly influenced by his grandfather and his robotics team leader in middle school to consider the army as a possibility for the future. Livezey grew up in a very patriotic family. His grandfather designed military helicopters, and, because of this, “the military was always on my radar,” says Livezey. His grandfather was an immensely influential figure throughout his childhood and teenage years, and growing up with the exposure to the military pushed in that direction. His middle school robotics team leader had been apart of ROTC, and Livezey described him as being “a man of character, funny, confident without being arrogant, and an overall great guy.”

The security that joining the military provides is also desirable to Livezey. After he graduated from Eastern University, he would immediately enter into four years of active service.

Livezey is specifically apart of the army branch of ROTC. When asked why he chose the army he said, “I wanted the action and also a facilitator role. You’re not special [in the army].” Livezey likes being a facilitator who helps his teammates succeed but he does not want all the credit because he sees how all members of a team work together to accomplish a task.

Livezey says that balancing ROTC and college classes is not easy. He is a mathematics major and a part of The Templeton Honors College. It takes discipline. Like most things, the amount of effort Livezey chooses to put into ROTC shows. If he slacks in his workout routine, he will not be able to pass the PT test. The effort he makes is also seen by his peers and superiors; they can all tell when he or anyone else is not putting the effort in. He wakes up early to go to PT twice a week at Valley Forge, and, to pass the occasional PT tests, he works out every day to keep up with the ever-increasing standards. He needs to be conscious of his health and maintain a certain weight. On top of his ROTC PT, field labs, and leadership class, Livezey also takes six classes and must find the time to complete all of his assignments and maintain a certain GPA. The classes in the honors college are demanding and require a lot of time due to the extensive reading and writing. Balancing health, fitness, and homework takes discipline, and it is exhausting for Livezey, but he is deeply passionate about a future military career and greatly enjoys ROTC.

“Everything rotates around my faith,” says Livezey. He is a devout Roman Catholic, and his faith is exceedingly important to him. It gives his purpose in his busy schedule and numerous responsibilities.

ROTC cadet, mathematics major and devout Roman Catholic, Livezey is busy with juggling all of his responsibilities in both college and ROTC, all while not letting himself slack in his faith.