Recent Grads to Serve in Army

Two recent Westmont graduates, who served with UC Santa Barbara’s ROTC Program while students, have been commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army. Jacob Bailey (‘24) of Whitefish, Montana, and Jared Noh (‘24) of Glendale will continue their service in the Army after
the summer.

Bailey, who earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering, will join flight school in Alabama for the next two years with the hope of flying Blackhawk helicopters. His long-term goal, after completing his 12-year contract with the Army, is to fly for Two Bear Air Rescue based in Kalispell, Montana. 

Bailey’s parents encouraged him to consider a military career since it seemed to fit his adventurous character and affinity for the outdoors. In his junior year of high school, when he struggled to visualize himself on a typical career path, he took their advice. “I did Boy Scouts in high school and loved the discipline and structure,” Bailey says. “That was my introduction into general military life, and from there it sounded interesting and a great way to start my adult life and serve my country.”

Noh, an Augustinian Scholar who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in economics and business, will begin Basic Officer Leader Course at Army Logistics University in Virginia this fall. He serves in the California Army National Guard one weekend a month with a Quartermaster sustainment unit in Santa Ana.

“I didn’t always plan to join, but at the end of the day, my intentions are to use my experiences in the Army to become a more confident communicator and a logistical thinker, eventually building a ministry focused on sharing the Gospel with Gen Z,” Noh says. “Westmont expanded my perspective on calling, and to view my career through the lens of work being eternally meaningful.”