During his four years at PennWest Clarion, Jacob Kline, a student in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program and a member of ROTC, has remained focused on his education. Along with the academic demands of the nursing program, he has advanced his skills in medical care through serving the Clarion community.

“Clarion Fire and Hose Company took me in as a freshman when I arrived in Clarion. It’s a tradition for the men in ROTC to volunteer at the fire department,” Kline said. “I found not only guidance through older cadets and members of the fire company, but a family here in Clarion.”

That family has become so integral that he requested his ROTC commissioning as a second lieutenant in the United States Army – typically part of the university’s commencement – be conducted at the Wood Street fire house. Prior service members and first responders were invited to attend in their dress uniforms. The ceremony was May 2, the day before he graduated with his nursing degree.

“The members in the fire department took me in as their own son or brother. Through them, I met members of Clarion Hospital EMS and decided to return to working as an EMT there,” Kline said. “I enjoy working and continuously learning from the senior EMTs and paramedics at Clarion Hospital EMS. It provides the perfect opportunity to get paid and have real medical experience before finding myself on the nursing floor.”

Both places held expectations for him to succeed in school, work and life. 

“They pushed me through some hardships as I struggled to find my place here in Clarion, and they welcomed me as one of their own,” he said.

Kline decided to pursue a career in nursing when the teacher of a medical careers class at Saint Marys High School – from which he graduated in 2022 – suggested that it would be a great fit for him. He chose PennWest Clarion because of the small class sizes, which foster individualized attention from faculty.

His inspiration for military service came from his family.

“My late grandfather served in the Army, and I felt it was only right to carry on the service in our family,” he said. “Before I decided on ROTC, I explored enlisting in the military. After finding out about ROTC, I felt that it was a perfect fit to pursue higher education and service to country.”

Stringent requirements go along with being an ROTC cadet. Physical training, weekly labs to learn basic soldier skills and how to lead others to complete missions, and a military science class that meets several times each week are mandatory.

Cadets complete field training exercises one weekend each semester, plus other duties such as memorial and fundraising events, student outreach programs, and military ball/dining in. After junior year, cadets typically attend mandatory Cadet Summer Training, where they prove knowledge and leadership skills. Kline attended a year early to allow greater focus on his nursing clinicals.

He elected to attend additional training in Air Assault school at West Point and the Nurse Summer Training Program in Hawaii. He used his PennWest nursing education in the NSTP, where he shadowed an Army nurse and worked on a unit to experience active-duty nursing.

ROTC cadets have a military service requirement after they graduate from college.

“My obligation after I graduate is passing the N-CLEX (nursing exam) and, since I am a scholarship cadet who is going active duty, I will have an initial contract of four years of service. This will start after I begin my Basic Officer Leadership Course at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas,” Kline said. “After completion of the 12-week course, I will then move to my duty station to complete the rest of my time requirement.”

Although he won’t know the duty station location until he completes the BOLC, he knows he will be assigned as a medical/surgical nurse.

Beyond the four-year military requirement, Kline is undecided between staying in the Army and becoming either a certified registered nurse anesthetist or nurse practitioner, or getting out and working as a registered nurse in the civilian world.

“Only the future can decide that,” he said.