CEHS senior wins 2025 Oklahoma Army National Guard Soldier of the Year

Monday, February 2, 2026

Media Contact: Christy Lang | Director, Marketing and Communications | 405-744-9740 | christy.lang@okstate.edu

“We end the day knowing we gave it everything we had” is more than a line in the Cowboy Code. It’s a principle that dietetics senior Juan Lopez proudly displayed in November, when he was named 2025 Oklahoma Army National Guard Soldier of the Year.

Leading up to this achievement, Lopez competed against eight fellow soldiers from across the state in the Oklahoma Best Warrior Competition, before advancing to the National Guard Region V Best Warrior Competition, where he earned third place out of 12 competitors from Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri.

The Best Warrior Competition is meant to test competitors through physical and mental challenges ranging from rigorous interviews to mental evaluations, obstacle courses, weapons assessments and more over several days.

Lopez’s humble reflection of his victory includes both the challenge of preparing for these competitions and the long-term outcomes of completing them with excellence.

“It was just so impactful, being able to put my effort into something like this and getting such a great payoff, especially because I was training on my own for the most part,” Lopez said. “It was just me coming up with a training plan and sticking to it, so it felt good to earn the fruits of my labor at the end of the day.”

As a result of his achievements in the Best Warrior Competition, Lopez was also meritoriously promoted to the rank of sergeant and awarded the Army Commendation Medal, which recognizes soldiers who go above and beyond their normal duties. A soldier’s Army Commendation Medal reflects not only their proficiency and excellence for a particular project, but also the trust, competence and professionalism they display.

Lopez serves as a signal operations support specialist in the 1st Battalion, 160th Field Artillery Regiment, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. While his primary role is to ensure that radios, computers and artillery function properly, Lopez is also tasked with understanding infantry basics, such as medical care, where his background in dietetics plays a role. 

“Having knowledge in nutrition enables me to help my soldiers fuel and perform better when we are doing exercises, and to advise them on how to improve their performance with what we have on hand if we were to be deployed,” Lopez said.

Lopez advises current and future students pursuing nutrition and dietetics to study hard in class, not for the right grade, but for long-term understanding of the subjects. 

“In dietetics, I found a field that I believed was academically rigorous but also had a very strong human interpersonal component to it, which I thought would be a good fit for me,” Lopez said.

“It’s been almost four years since my introductory classes, and probably close to two years since the first physiology class I took, and I still have a really robust understanding of these subjects. Management classes can also be applied to any role. The things I learned in that class help me to take a step back when issues come up and then help improve the organization I’m part of.”

Lopez looks back fondly on his undergraduate career at OSU, not only because of the classes he has benefited from, but also because of the professors who have become mentors to him.

“I think I’m pretty smart, but they’ve got way more experience and intellect than me in that realm,” Lopez said.

He also mentioned that his best advice for students would be to confidently connect with people who can provide help.

“Many professionals are eager to share their craft, and all it takes is a bit of courage to reach out to them.”

Dr. Jill Joyce, an associate professor of  Nutritional Sciences at Oklahoma State, speaks highly of Lopez as a student and future practitioner.

“Having had Juan in a management class, we regularly geek out on leadership topics and have nerdy, fun discussions about different leadership scenarios,” Joyce said. “It's been a lot of fun to see Juan grow and develop as a new NCO and leader, and as a future dietitian.”

Lopez plans to return to Oklahoma State in the fall to pursue a  Master of Science in Dietetics Research, while continuing his work in the Oklahoma National Guard.

Story By: Faith Frantz | faith.frantz@okstate.edu