Standley Spectrum
JROTC Now Offered at UCFriday, May 25, 2012 By Jason Bressler and Derek De Loera
JROTC [Junior Reserve Officer’s Training Corps] was put into the National Defense Act of 1916. Under the provisions of the 1916 act, high schools were allowed to use military equipment and the assignment of active or retired military personnel as instructors on the condition that they followed a prescribed course of training and maintained a minimum enrollment of 100 students over 14 years of age. Joining JROTC does not automatically enlist you into the Military. Each branch of the U.S. Armed Forces maintains their own JROTC, and as of June 2006, there are a total of 3,229 units: 1,555 units of Army (AJROTC), 794 Air Force (AFJROTC), 619 Marine Corps (MCJROTC), and one Coast Guard (CGJROTC) unit. JROTC is partially funded by the United States Department of Defense. The federal government subsidizes instructor salaries, cadet uniforms, equipment and textbooks. There are no real requirements in JROTC, cadets just have to be able to stay in the program and failure to keep their GPA at the unit’s standard will result in cadets being suspended from activities until grades are brought back up to the unit’s standards. Cadets who have certain GPA’s that are good are eligible for honor societies. [Example: Kitty Hawk Air Society is an honor society for the Air Force JROTC] Studetns attending UC High in the Fall will have the opportunity to join MCJROTC. This is a new program offered to UC students next year. For more information, contact Senior Marine Instructor for UC MCJROTC, LtCol Brian T. Josten at bjosten@sandi.net or call the office at (858) 457-3040. |