JCCC student Travis Conner will always give his best effort, no matter what. He doesn’t have a choice. The U.S. Army, he said, drilled it into him.

“There is no way I would not do my best on something,” Conner said. “It didn’t matter what it was…I’d always wanted to get the best score possible, because if I didn’t, there’d always be someone behind you saying ‘do it again.’”

Conner, an active Army infantryman from 2006 to 2010, uses those skills he learned in the military to complete his classwork, including an honors contract in his calculus class.

He wants to work in aerospace engineering someday, perhaps employed by a weapons manufacturer.

Conner is no novice to weaponry. From July 2009 to June 2010, he was deployed to Afganistan with orders to “find the Taliban.” One day, he found himself standing on the wrong end of a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG). The soldiers had nowhere to run, having been funneled into an alley between two buildings, as a combatant turned the corner and pointed the weapon at them.

The soldiers were saved when the RPG blew up, killing only the man that held it.

There are other stories, Conner said – that was just one.

At JCCC, Conner belongs to Salute, a nationally recognized veteran’s honor society that seeks to “recognize, reward and honor the academic accomplishments of current or former members” of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Conner’s father was also a member of the army, and he grew up hearing stories about his father’s experiences as a soldier. After Conner graduated from Osawatomie (Kan.) High School in 2006, he spent a few years working for his father refinishing boats before he decided to enlist.

“At 18 I had no idea what I wanted to do. The work with my dad was fine, but I just couldn’t see doing it for the rest of my life,” he said.

He enlisted in November 2006 and was sent to Fort Benning in Georgia for basic training. “I was one of only six guys to get promoted after [basic training]. I’m pretty proud about that,” he said.

In his free time, you might find Conner working out, out on a run or playing “Call of Duty” on his videogame system. More than likely, you’ll find him studying or in class.

“I’m a nerd, I guess. I like to learn. I like to come to class every day,” he said. “I look forward to getting good grades. There’s no room for not doing my best. I just assume I have to do it.”