#Vmi alumni postview access how to

As for the job I was doing, I hated it more bitterly than I can perhaps make clear. Theoretically - and secretly, of course - I was all for the Burmese and all against their oppressors, the British. For at that time I had already made up my mind that imperialism was an evil thing and the sooner I chucked up my job and got out of it the better. There were several thousands of them in the town and none of them seemed to have anything to do except stand on street corners and jeer at Europeans.Īll this was perplexing and upsetting. The young Buddhist priests were the worst of all.

In the end the sneering yellow faces of young men that met me everywhere, the insults hooted after me when I was at a safe distance, got badly on my nerves. When a nimble Burman tripped me up on the football field and the referee (another Burman) looked the other way, the crowd yelled with hideous laughter. As a police officer I was an obvious target and was baited whenever it seemed safe to do so. No one had the guts to raise a riot, but if a European woman went through the bazaars alone somebody would probably spit betel juice over her dress. I was sub-divisional police officer of the town, and in an aimless, petty kind of way anti-European feeling was very bitter. Photo courtesy Virginia Military Institute.In Moulmein, in Lower Burma, I was hated by large numbers of people - the only time in my life that I have been important enough for this to happen to me. Take the principles you learn at VMI … and keep applying and growing in those areas even after you graduate.” “Keep your goals in mind, especially on the hard days. The young alumnus does have some advice for cadets still in barracks.

#Vmi alumni postview access how to

“VMI prepared me to foster that working environment and how to make good contributions … VMI was also great for building soft skills such as communicating with bosses in a confident and respectful way.”īeing back on post for Cyber Fusion gave Smith “a weird mix of emotions.” The bittersweet feeling reminded him of how much he achieved in that year-goals he set as a cadet are already coming to fruition. “My undergraduate research experience exposed me to dealing with the inevitable setbacks that come with research and finding ways to step back and solve the problem,” Smith said.

VMI prepared him well for graduate school in many ways. “Using their careers as sort of a blueprint, I knew grad school was something I wanted to do at some point.” Smith’s inspiration for attending grad school came from his grandfathers-one of whom was also a VMI graduate, Thomas Essig ’64-who both earned their Ph.D. Shawn Addington, Ph.D., VMI electrical and computer engineering department head. The group published their findings at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers SoutheastCon under the supervision of Col. He also worked with a few of his brother rats-Garner Fleming ’21, Noah Breeding ’21, and Matt Dickman ’21-on a research project involving optimizing solar cells with artificial intelligence. David Livingston, Ph.D., emeritus professor of electrical and computer engineering, working on autonomous vehicle research. While at VMI, Smith participated in a summer internship under Col. “I came along due to my familiarity with the research and the VMI connection,” he said. Smith’s research is funded by the same organization as Symple Solutions and is closely related to the work they do. students at VCU, which offers digital instrumentation and control systems for nuclear power. He came to Cyber Fusion with Symple Solutions-a startup by current and recently graduated Ph.D. in electrical engineering with a focus on microelectronics fabrication at Virginia Commonwealth University. Bennett “Ben” Smith ’21 is currently working on his Ph.D. The fifth annual Commonwealth Cyber Fusion and Virginia Cyber Cup Competition allowed one VMI alumnus to revisit his old stomping grounds in February 2022. By that, I mean I could see myself leaving the after the event and walking across the Parade Ground to go back to my old room, even though it’s been almost a year.” “As soon as I got back on post, all the muscle memory came back to me.