Opinion: In Defense of RMC

OPINION Hill Times

In defense of Canada’s military colleges

By?BRYAN BRULOTTE AND TELAH MORRISON??????JUNE 15, 2022

We are exceptionally proud to have served with the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in defense of Canada, and especially proud of having graduated from the Royal Military College (RMC).

Both of Canada’s Royal Military Colleges are national universities that go beyond academics in that they develop leaders who swear an oath to serve and protect Canada.

Our fellow RMC graduates are strong, highly intelligent, motivated, and disciplined. We believe in those values which are the foundation of the institution’s ethos: truth, duty, and valour. Together, we have shared experiences, exhilaration, challenges, and trials which have resulted in the formation of life-long friendships that could not be matched elsewhere.

In addition to standard baccalaureate degrees, we had the following mandatory courses: leadership and management, psychology, sociology, philosophy, ethics, bilingualism, and law.

As officer-cadets, we received four years of pragmatic leadership experience before graduating and taking command positions in the (CAF). Many graduates soon found themselves as newly minted lieutenants, leading soldiers in war-torn countries.

There was also a heavy emphasis on sports and team work, as the RMC strove to set the gold standard for leadership. As standards were high, only a portion of our entry-year class would ended up graduating to take on a leadership role in the CAF.

It wasn’t all fun and games. It was a tough and serious preparation for the challenging profession of arms. All of us have subsequently had classmates killed or wounded in combat operations. But that reality is what we signed up for.

Admittedly, RMC was predominately a male culture when we enrolled. To us, the culture was not toxic, but it was certainly testosterone-laden. On the first day of recruit class, we were told in no uncertain terms that there would be zero tolerance for any harassment, intimidation, discrimination, or hazing of any kind. We attended multiple lectures on the subject. RMC was not the type of place that one generally breaks the rules.

Despite the strict regulations, we know that both male and female cadets experienced sexual harassment and, even more seriously, sexual assaults. These were unacceptable. There can be no doubt that some exceptions slipped through the cracks.

Hearing about such incidents—both historic and current, is heart-wrenching.

According to the Arbour report, the RMC has a lower incident rate of misconduct than what Statistics Canada reports for Canadian universities. Regrettably, the Arbour report’s terms of reference, research design, and conclusions appear to only emphasize the negative. For example, the report fails to indicate that, on a per capita basis, the RMC has produced more national leaders than any other Canadian university.

This is a critical point as it concretely demonstrates that RMC produces exceptional Canadian leaders in all walks of life. These include generals, politicians, public servants, astronauts, captains of industry, and Olympic athletes. Calls for tearing down this venerable institution are narrow-sighted and ill-conceived.

When you put into perspective the reality is that every Canadian university (including Arbour’s own alma mater) is currently struggling with young students involved in sexual assault, harassment issues, drinking, drugs, and reckless partying. Should we shut down all universities? This notion is absurd. These institutions have problems, but it does not mean they should be abolished.

Potentially throwing the next generation of military leaders into a civilian university and hoping for the best is risky. At present, more than 60 per cent of the most senior officers in the CAF are RMC graduates, despite representing 30 per cent of all CAF entry level officers. Officer-cadets who graduate from RMC are well-prepared for their future roles leading soldiers, sailors, and aviators into harm’s way.

We propose the following solutions to strengthen RMC: strive for greater diversity in recruitment of college positions; improve training to emphasize, ethics, and code-of-conduct; facilitate the rapid dismissal of cadets and staff engaged in misconduct; and reinforce a process wherein victims can raise their concerns while still ensuring privacy.

Since 1874, RMC has aspired to the ideals of truth, duty, and valour. With an ethos of selfless leadership, many of its officers have paid the ultimate price in war and peace. We owe it to them and to our future, to preserve and improve this national institution.

Dr. Bryan Brulotte KGCJ CD is a graduate of the Royal Military College Saint-Jean. He served as an infantry officer in Canada and overseas. He is the chairman & CEO of a national recruitment and HR firm.?Col. Telah Morrison OMM, CD, MA (retired) is a graduate of the Royal Military College Saint-Jean. She served as a senior officer in Canada and overseas. She recently retired.

The Hill Times