Published on May 19, 2025 by Joelle Youngblood  
AFROTC 2025

Four cadets were appointed as second lieutenants in the U.S. Air Force during the spring commissioning ceremony for the U.S. Air Force ROTC Detachment 012 on May 1 in Samford University’s Reid Chapel. The detachment, located on Samford’s campus, trains cadets from colleges and universities throughout the Birmingham area.

For the first time in several years, all four cadets are Samford graduates. In addition, all four earned degrees from Howard College of Arts and Sciences. The newly commissioned U.S. Air Force officers include:

  • Frederick Bishop ’25 who will begin his career as a pilot at Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi. Bishop graduated with a degree in Spanish.
  • Bennett Jakobsen ’25 who will begin his career as a Cyber Operations Officer at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi. Jakobsen graduated with a degree in Computer Science.
  • Samuel Johnson ’25 will begin his career as a pilot at Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi. Johnson graduated with a degree in Mathematics.
  • Nathaniel Loper ’25 will begin his career as a Combat Systems Officer at the Naval Air Station in Florida. Loper graduated with a degree in Sociology.

“Samford’s AFROTC detachment is a family of hard-working people who push each other to care more and serve well,” Loper said, reflecting on the close-knit unit that also includes students from The University of Alabama at Birmingham and Jefferson State. “I couldn’t be better prepared for a career in military service as a result of my time here.”

Johnson and Bishop will begin pilot training together at Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi—an uncommon pairing for such a small class. Reflecting on the unique demands and rewards of the program, Bishop said, “We experience something no other Samford students do. We wake up at 6 a.m. to fly planes, visit military bases, run drills and study national security. It’s made my college experience much more meaningful.”

Loper articulated the class’s unified commitment to service, stating, “Our commissioned class of 2025 is ready to etch our names into the heroes of American history.”

Learn more about the U.S. Air Force ROTC Detachment 012 at Samford University.

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 6,101 students from 45 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks with the second highest score in the nation for its 98% Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.