Loyola Marymount University welcomed Lt. Col. Nathan K. Chang on July 20, 2022, as the new commander to the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps Detachment 040.
Chang was commissioned in 2005 through the Air Force ROTC, graduating from the University of Washington with a degree in electrical engineering. He earned an MBA from Grantham University in 2010.
“I always wanted to serve and experience a mission that is greater than myself,” said Chang of his attraction to the AFROTC. “LMU was my top choice because of the location and university’s reputation. This is one of the longest Air Force and university relationships, and so there’s rich history here.”
Air Force ROTC Detachment 040 at LMU was established in 1948, just one year after the founding of the U.S. Air Force as an independent service branch. The AFROTC program prepares students to assume positions of increasing responsibility and prominence in the modern Air and Space Forces.
Chang comes to LMU after spending nearly a decade on the East Coast, most recently as the Rhombus Guardian program manager at the Pentagon, a platform intended to gain strategic analytic insights using artificial intelligence and machine learning.
“The fall term will be the first time the detachment will be meeting in person full-time since the start of the pandemic,” said Chang. “Trying to do physical training or mentoring over Zoom — there’s an inherent human interaction that’s missing.”
There will be 30 to 40 incoming cadets this fall, and Chang is interested in growing and strengthening partnerships at LMU and the 54 crosstown schools to raise awareness of Detachment 040 and the work they do in the community. “We want to be a good steward of resources here on campus and also help grow our relationships with people at LMU and our crosstown schools,” said Chang. Chang’s predecessor, Lt. Col. Kari Hill, served as LMU’s AFROTC commander from 2019 to 2022 and navigated leading the detachment through the COVID-19 pandemic with great skill and authority. Her service and leadership are deeply appreciated by the detachment.