Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps
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Image:SF Chinese new year p1060738.jpg The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) is a program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces in high schools across America that trains high school students in the areas of leadership, character education, and military sciences. Each program is directed by a Commissioned Offcier and a Staff non Commissioned Officer. In certain situations there may be more than one assistant instructor. General or flag officers are not generally allowed to work as JROTC instructors. Junior ROTC units may also be found in military schools.
All five armed service branches sponsor JROTC programs. Note that unlike college and university ROTC programs, Navy and Marine Corps JROTC programs are separate entities. At present, the Coast Guard operates only one unit of JROTC in Miami, FL.
In public schools, JROTC is usually an elective course with membership limited to US citizens and legal foreign nationals, those who will graduate with their 9th grade corhort, and have not experienced and out of school suspension during the preceeding 6 month period. Boarding schools may offer JROTC programs, with some requiring participation as a condition for acceptance to the school. Often, students will participate for one year receive credit in lieu of a physical education class. Students who excel in the first year of JROTC can apply for a second year. Most schools offer three to four years of JROTC training.
The curriculum stresses leadership training and character education. Cadets typically wear their uniforms once or twice a week, usually standing for inspection, with the exception being those cadets who attend a JROTC-based military academy. Many cadets participate in extracurricular activities such as a drill team, color guard, marksmanship team, or orienteering. During the school year, there are regional competitions between JROTC units, with testing in all areas of military, naval and aerospace science.
Some units organize special visits to US military bases during school breaks. There are also many summertime "leadership academies" for cadets hosted by various military installations.
Many units also host an annual military ball where cadets put on their best dress uniforms (see related article mess dress) and gather together for a formal dinner. Usually awards are presented, speeches are given, and in many respects the occasion is like a second "prom" for juniors and seniors; sophomores and freshman are also allowed to attend the Military Ball. Female cadets are generally not required to wear the dress uniform for military ball, but some do so voluntarily.
Sometimes units also have a separate awards ceremony, which is attended by the instructors, guests, and parents. Fraternal organizations, such as the American Legion, often give out awards for military excellence, academics, and citizenship, in addition to the standard awards given by the JROTC program.
The year is often finished with a change of command ceremony, where the new unit commander, executive officer, and other unit officers are named and take command from the current officers. Usually mid-level officers are also named.
Many units choose the next year's NCO and junior officer's corps based on Officer Candidate and NCO Candidate Schools, usually held immediately following the end of the school year.
Successful completion of the program (usually 2-4 years of classes) can lead to advanced enlistee rank. For example, upon completion of 4 years of Air Force JROTC, it is possible for cadets, at their senior aerospace science instructor's discretion, to enlist in the Air Force at the rank of Airman First Class(E-3). Many JROTC instructors, however, encourage their cadets to apply to one or more of the United States military academies and/or college ROTC programs. The hope is to inspire cadets to go on to college, and if they desire military service, to do so by becoming a commissioned officer. JROTC incurs no obligation to join the military. Units are set up according to the layout of their parent service. Army and Marine Corps JROTC units follow the battalion structure. Air Force JROTC Units are composed structurally based on size (wing if more than 251 cadets, group if more than 101, squadron if more than 51). Navy JROTC also typically follows the battalion (or company, depending on size) structure.
The most prevalent type of JROTC can easily be disputed, although numbers run in favor of Army and Air Force programs because of the size of their parent services; the Army has the most units, followed by the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. The total number of JROTC units permitted per service branch across the nation is determined by a quota set by the Federal government.