SPARTAN SPOTLIGHT
Grace Vincent: A Force of Nature
By Cassie Myers
Growing up in Vacaville, California, Grace Vincent, ’25 Aviation, loved to hear the “heavies,” the heavy cargo bay planes from Travis Air Force Base, booming as they passed over her high school. They gave her a sense of excitement, possibility — and a dream was born.
She always assumed she wanted to be a pilot, and when she first came to San José State as a Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) student and aviation major, her ambitions didn’t change. But then she had a mentor who spoke to her about the Space Force.
“That was the fork in the road,” Vincent says. “I thought, ‘Am I going to continue this pilot path or pursue something entirely new?’” The Space Force, established in 2019, is the newest branch of the military, tasked with establishing the United States’ military presence in space as well as ensuring space communications capabilities and bolstering the growing US space industry. It’s a branch of the Air Force that falls under the Air Force’s larger umbrella, like the Marine Corps under the Navy.
ROTC students typically graduate with a commission into a specific branch of the US military, but have only been inducted into the Space Force since June 2022. Many students (as well as their parents, and the general public) are unfamiliar with the branch or its workings. At first, this included Vincent.
Cadets Grace Vincent (left) and Rhiannon O'Keefe proudly hold their "boarding passes," which reveal the destinations for their upcoming first assignments as soon-to-be Second Lieutenants. Photo: Robert C. Bain.
“Part of my journey has been educating people about the Space Force mission. It's a passion I've grown into.”
— Grace Vincent
Getting to know space
But as she learned about the Space Force, she grew more and more interested, and during her sophomore year, she applied to the program.
The interview process was difficult, including a detailed application, a virtual interview and a long wait to hear back. But one day her Detachment Commander pulled her in for a normal quarterly review and casually added, “If you notice the 13-S on your paper there, that means you were selected for the Space Force.” She couldn’t believe it.
The biggest hurdle after that was the explanations — after all, the Space Force is new, and most of its work is highly classified, so she remembers her parents in particular being confused by her new assignment. And since they were her biggest supporters, this was a crucial step.
“Part of my journey has been educating them on the mission,” Vincent explains. “It's a passion I've grown into. It’s a huge blessing to be able to learn more and grow my knowledge and then have that grow my passion for joining.”
An early morning training session for ROTC. Photo: Robert C. Bain.
An example for others
Vincent is also a trailblazer: the first ROTC cadet from SJSU to be commissioned as a lieutenant through the new Space Force exclusive pipeline.
“It’s such an honor for me because I feel like I'm making history,” she says. “But being the only one in my class has also been a huge responsibility, carrying the Space Force image amongst my other young underclassmen. When they see me, they see the Space Force by proxy. So it’s been super interesting as well as a weighty responsibility that I take seriously, and has pushed me to be better and better every time I put on the uniform.” And since then I've seen more underclassmen follow the same path.”
“I think what I want people to see from my experience is that I'm completely ordinary. I'm an aviation major. Two years ago, I would never have guessed that this was where I’d be sitting.”
— Grace Vincent
The future of Space Force
Space Force cadets like Vincent embark on a 12-month officer training course (OTC) upon graduation, in order to familiarize themselves with procedures and possible projects before they’re selected for specific Space Force missions in space operations, intelligence, cyber or engineering. She’s specifically interested in intel or operations.
As she points out, Space Force work was always going to be “remote,” so the locations are flexible. Field and intelligence work in the Space Force is often conducted from a computer, but the Space Force has physical facilities (or Deltas) at various Air Force bases across the country and around the world, including in Colorado, Florida, California and New Zealand.
On a late February morning, Vincent discovered that she will be assigned to Colorado Springs, Colorado, and will serve her first year as a Gold Bar Recruiter (GBR), a prestigious and competitive posting that will take her all over Colorado to present scholarships, recruit at schools and serve other recruiting missions. She’ll begin her training just a few weeks after graduation.
ROTC students under a beautiful sky for early Friday morning training at SJSU. Photo: Robert C. Bain.
ROTC and beyond
While Vincent awaits graduation, she’s had time to reflect on what Space Force means, both to her and others. She’s aware of her responsibility and eager to serve in any capacity.
“Space is the future,” she declares. “People should learn what the Space Force does because it supports practically everything. Understanding how it supports our missions overseas and knowing how much we rely on it as a society is really important.”
She’s also had time to reflect on her SJSU journey. When she graduates, she’ll miss the camaraderie with her peers. ROTC students take full course loads on top of their duties, which include workouts, drills and leadership training exercises involving everything from hypothetical military scenarios to workshops — and they do most of that work together.
“I think my fondest memories are following Leadership Laboratory on Fridays, reconnecting with my peers, hashing out what happened that day and just enjoying each other,” she says.
“I also loved being able to walk around in uniform with my cadre, just being a part of that group. There’s a difference between walking around campus in uniform alone versus walking in uniform next to other people. That gives me a huge sense of pride and responsibility to something bigger.”
“It’s such an honor for me because I feel like I'm making history. But being the only one in my class has also been a huge responsibility, carrying the Space Force image amongst my other young underclassmen.”
— Grace Vincent
The power of curiosity
“I think what I want people to see from my experience is that I'm completely ordinary,” she adds. “I'm an aviation major. Two years ago, I would never have guessed that this was where I’d be sitting.” But her openness to other opportunities led her to the Space Force and beyond.
She also encourages curiosity in her fellow students, about ROTC or the military in general. “Keep asking questions,” she urges. “If you see somebody in uniform, ask them what they do. We love talking about it and we love educating people.”
After all, her own curiosity has clearly served her well.
Washington Square: San José State University's Magazine © 2025. All Rights Reserved | Accessibility | Land Acknowledgement