Meriden Cadet Under Officer (CUO) Olivia Lee has become first female cadet posted to the position of Senior Under Officer of the Trinity Grammar School Army Cadet Unit (TGSACU).
The Senior Under Officer (SUO) is the highest executive role and serves as the head of the Army Cadet Unit. The SUO, in conjunction with other executive officers, is responsible for the planning, leading activities and management of the unit.
Olivia first joined the TGSACU while she was in Year 7 and has risen up the ranks to CUO, the highest promotion attainable within a school cadet unit. She is currently in Year 11 and was named Meriden’s Head Prefect for 2025.
“I look forward to finishing my cadet journey as a Year 12 student and I am confident that my skills and experiences will continue to develop and be applied to my life outside of school,” Olivia said.
“Cadets is a unique environment to develop leadership, respect for self and others and various practical skills.
“As an individual, I have grown in courage, resilience and discipline and developed my understanding of what good leadership looks like in different contexts. I have enjoyed getting to know younger cadets and have had the privilege of witnessing their growth in confidence and expertise as they progress and contribute to the unit.
“In more senior years, overcoming challenges and organising logistics has made cadets a particularly rewarding experience, especially as you share these accomplishments in the context of a Unit composed of cadets from different years and schools, who have all played distinct yet valuable roles.”
As the first SUO of the unit, Olivia displays the qualities and values that the Cadet program aims to facilitate – responsibility, self-discipline, teamwork, leadership, initiative, service, courage, respect, integrity and excellence.
The Cadets program is Meriden’s largest cocurricular activity. It operates in partnership with Trinity Grammar School to form a co-educational unit that now comprises more than 500 students.
