Navy V-12 Training Program

A Navy V-12 platoon poses with “4-0” the dog, ca. 1944. Photo credit: Trinity College Archives

The Navy V-12 Training Program was established by the United States Navy during World War II to provide large numbers of college-educated men for its officer corps, the United States Marines, and supply units. Through the program, young men known as trainees received academic instruction modified for the military. Upon program completion, trainees did not receive a degree but a certification that they had completed their academic requirements. Trinity College was one of 131 sites chosen for the program, which commenced on July 1, 1943 and ended October 30, 1945. Over the course of three years, 906 trainees studied at Trinity (out of about 125,000 nationally) compared to only 301 civilian students.

Background

When the United States entered World War II in 1941, President Remsen Brinckerhoff Ogilby did his best to stabilize the College. Trinity altered its curriculum and calendar year, even implementing a summer school program to help accelerate graduation and encourage those interested in joining the military to complete their education. While in 1941 there were 528 students enrolled, by 1944 there were only 75. Trinity administrators also worried about whether the College would have to temporarily close.

Shortly after the Navy V-12 program was established at Trinity, in August 1943, President Ogilby suffered a heart attack while swimming at his Rhode Island residence. He died before he could be brought to shore. This loss compounded the already mounting uncertainty the War had brought to Trinity. The Board of Trustees appointed as acting president Dr. Arthur H. Hughes, who had served as Professor of German since his arrival in 1935.

Trainees came from a variety of backgrounds: some were high school graduates, had college experience, or were from the military. The program offered basic academic courses modified for the Navy's needs. For instance, there were a large number of mathematics courses and the few faculty remaining found themselves teaching subjects outside their typical purview, such as calculus, trigonometry, analytical geometry, navigation, mechanical drawing, U.S. history, philosophy, and English.

Though the Navy V-12 program did not generate an abundance of revenue, it did help the College remain operational during wartime while enrollments plummeted. In the program, trainees used the College dormitories and utilized the Commons in Cook Hall for mess. The unit's commanding officers, Lieutenants Ives Atherton, Frederick E. Mueller, and Vincent J. Conroy, came from civilian life and encouraged trainees to participate in the Hartford Community and undergraduate extracurricular activities. The trainees also held War Bond Drives (which raised over $164,000), put on shows including Sports Nights and theatrical performances, and participated in military reviews on Saturdays on the football field. In one Trinity Tripod article, students wondered if Navy V-12 should be represented in the Senate, as they vastly outnumbered Trinity enrollments and were enmeshed in College life. The unit even had a mascot, a small dog named 4-O that appeared at the unit one day and followed the members around.

At commencement in 1944, the V-12 unit presented Trinity with the John Paul Jones pew end in the chapel to commemorate its presence on campus.

At the Navy Commencement on October 17, 1945, Commander Frank W. Rowe Jr., Assistant Director of Training in the Third Naval District, presented the College with a certificate of commendation on behalf of the Navy Department, to express approval of its share in the training of Navy officer candidates during the war. The College gave an engraved testimonial letter to Lieutenant Vincent J. Conroy, Commanding Officer of the V-12 Unit.

The Navy V-12 program ended at Trinity on October 30, 1945 and ended nationwide on June 30, 1946.