Recent MTSU grads earn commissions into Army, Marines

Two recent MTSU graduates received their military commissions earlier this summer.

Zachary “Zach” Seaton of Columbia, Tennessee, was commissioned as a second lieutenant into the U.S. Army just before graduating in August. Riley Marshall of Buchanan, Virginia, was commissioned as a second lieutenant into the U.S. Marine Corps in mid-July.

Recent MTSU graduate Zach Seaton of Columbia, Tenn., is shown at the early August ceremony where he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. A geosciences major, he will join the field artillery branch of the Army National Guard. (MTSU photo by Samantha Valentine)

Commissioning ceremonies are a formal event celebrating Seaton and Marshall moving forward in their military journeys. They include the swearing-in by a military leader, pinning by family member and first salute from family or friend.

A geosciences major at MTSU, Seaton was sworn in by U.S. Army Maj. Ben Sweeney, a member the ROTC faculty, in a campus ceremony. His parents, David and Alicia Seaton and brother, Jackson Seaton, pinned on his second lieutenant bars. His grandfather, Michael Burns, performed the first salute.

Seaton will join the field artillery branch of the Army National Guard.

Greg, left, and Molly Marshall pin the second lieutenant bars on their son, Riley Marshall, during a mid-July U.S. Marines commissioning ceremony. An MTSU aerospace pro pilot major, Riley Marshall will report Oct. 17 for basic school and spend six months at Quantico, Va., then eventually train as a naval aviator at the Navy air base in Pensacola, Fla. (Submitted photo)

Marshall, 23, an aerospace professional pilot major and December 2021 graduate, was commissioned July 15 in a special ceremony at Murfreesboro Airport’s new terminal.

He was sworn in by Marine Maj. Rich Veloz and pinned by his parents, Molly and Greg Marshall. Marine Corp. Travis Houser, an MTSU alumnus, performed the first salute.

Marshall will report Oct. 17 for basic school and spend six months at Quantico, Virginia. Eventually, he will be a student naval aviator and train at the Navy air base in Pensacola, Florida.

Geosciences and aerospace are two of 11 College of Basic and Applied Sciences departments.

— Randy Weiler (Randy.Weiler@mtsu.edu)