Swansea High grad’s successes featured in Citadel’s marketing campaign

Swansea, SC (Paul Kirby) – When a business or institution is trying to market anything, whether it be a car, a home, or even a service like a college education, they’re always going to show you their top of the line products first. It’s not that anything they provide is sub-standard, but by showing you their best, they are telling you we produce quality, high-end products or services and within our product line, we’ll have a something that’s just right for you.

When the Citadel, South Carolina’s military college in Charleston, SC markets their opportunities for a great higher education experience, they take the same approach. They show you the top of the line young cadets enrolled in their courses right out of high school, but they also show you their full product line including exceptional students that may be older, some with many life experiences to share that are currently enrolled in The Citadel’s less traditional educational settings. They market their entire product line of educational opportunities designed for students in many different stages of their lives. That way, a broad range of potential students can decide on what’s best for them when deciding what school to pick.

For this reason, The Citadel recently featured a graduate of Swansea High School in a marketing campaign. Thomas Taylor graduated high school and enlisted in the US Army in 2007. According to the publication Our Mighty Citadel, the school's magazine that featured Taylor's accomplishments, he planned to make a career in the Army. Unfortunately, while serving in Afghanistan, Taylor injured his back after a building collapsed on him. This forced him to rethink his plans. That's when he started exploring the idea of pursuing a college education.

The Citadel’s staff says for veteran students making the transition from active-duty life to the civilian world, The Citadel offers a familiar, comforting way of life and a reminder of the student’s former service.

With Taylor’s extensive background and record in the Army, he knew he loved the discipline, the comradery, and the structure of a military life. After all, he had served in various active duty roles including airborne infantryman, machine gun operator, and designated marksman. For Taylor, deciding on a college was easy. As a native of South Carolina and the son of a 1977 graduate, he knew The Citadel was the place for him.

According to the Our Mighty Citadel article, Taylor enrolled in 2016, majoring in exercise science. The Citadel offers veterans several ways to earn a degree, including night classes and online instruction. Another option is the veteran day program which allows veterans to attend classes with cadets on campus. Veteran students do not live on campus or have military and fitness requirements. There is, however, an opportunity to interact with and mentor cadets—a perk Taylor enjoys because it gives him the opportunity to share his life experiences with young people seeking a military career.

"There is a camaraderie between cadets and veteran students. We can express ourselves, and the cadets are really hungry for our stories," Taylor said in the Our Mighty Citadel’s article. "I want to help shape tomorrow’s leaders. It’s important to me because I want to help influence change. It’s not something that is taught in a classroom."

Now at 33, Taylor says his own military experience instilled in him a determination to succeed. For him, quitting has never been an option, even during the most intense physical training. “I was not built for running but being alongside those guys who wouldn't give up gave me the drive to push harder to not be the last guy but to strive to be better,” he said when speaking with Our Mighty Citadel.

Last spring, Taylor earned his Bachelor of Science degree, but he still thinks he has more to learn and share. He’s enrolled himself in the Master of Science in Health, Exercise and Sport Science with a concentration in tactical performance and resiliency. He wants to help soldiers, veterans and first responders by preparing them for the mental and physical stresses of their job.

While Taylor’s departure from the Army was not part of his original plan, his determination to serve remains. “The military was a challenge, and that’s why I chose to finish my degree at The Citadel—for the challenge,” Taylor said in the article. “Sometimes the harder path is the right path.”

To see the entire article featuring Thomas Taylor and a great video with him in Our Mighty Citadel, go to: https://www.citadel.edu/root/our-mighty-citadel/thomas-taylor.