JROTC Analysis

NO SLACK, NO EXCUSES! That’s the motto of highest qualified unit in the county. There are 9 JROTC programs in Prince William County. 4 of those are Air Force: Battlefield, Freedom, Hylton, and Stonewall Jackson, 2 are Army: Forest Park and Woodbridge, 1 are Marines: Garfield, and 2 are Navy: Osbourn Park and Potomac (“Prince”). When it comes to selecting the rating of a unit it follows under 3 different categories: Honor unit with the distinction; the highest honor, Honor Unit, and Merit Unit; the lowest honor. However, only 2 of the schools’ programs follow these regulations because that is the way the 4th Brigade of the United States has established for Army units. While the other branches follow a different grading scale. As a current Battalion

Commander, with four years of experience both in the NCO and officer side of a Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps, I have learned to operate and master all functions of an Honor Unit with Distinction Battalion. I have worked with cadets of all grades and LET levels. As a result, I am well aware and have high quality experience in overseeing a whole Battalion from the bottom all the way to the top. By working with other leaders from multiple units around the county, I am highly aware that not all the other JROTC units are qualified to obtain a star or a recognition to distinguish them as program that will serve to influence cadets to become better citizens, provide them with life skills, and values.
These categories are determined by the accreditation or a formal inspection performed on the unit.

It is a very intensive and highly time consuming event. The preparation for this inspection usually takes at least one year and sometimes longer according to the evidence of services that you have to provide. Now, only Woodbridge High and Forest Park high school actually go through the same process for the inspection. This evaluation shows how qualified the unit is according to the star that they obtain. Not only that, but units that are considered qualified tend to have better cadets with higher capabilities in leadership and self discipline. In addition, they are more likely to obtain life skills to overcome challenges. They are mentally more prepared and understand the seven values of JROTC that are: loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, respect, honor and

integrity.
The Viking Battalion at Woodbridge Senior High School is a Honor with Distinction unit. It is the oldest unit in the county, established in 1993. It has the highest reputation for it being the unit with the most distinguished honors. This unit is highly qualified because of the amount of training, leadership and performance from each cadet. These qualifications have a number of requirements from each section that is extremely difficult for schools to accomplish. For example, the Viking Battalion is great with holding community service events, planning ahead of time and conducting after action reports but falls short in attendance , multitasking and communication between leaders.
The Bruin Battalion of Forest Park High School, is one of the few youngest units in the county, established in 2001. This unit does not have qualified program because they have not passed their inspection. The inspection is every four years, they’ve had 3 opportunities to obtain a start but have been unsuccessful. This means that next year the program will have another opportunity to pass their inspection and if they do, they will obtain one of the three stars and if not, their program will be into consideration for the county superintendent to shut it down. Imagine how awful it would be to close a program that over 130 cadets participate in. Many cadets will lose the opportunities to learn values like: loyalty, duty, respect and integrity if the program does not pass the accreditation process. This Battalion does not have a small chance to pass the inspection because they do not have the right leaders. Their Chain of Command is formed of cadets that have never been through an inspection and most of them are just placed in a position to prevent it from being vacant. As a result, their Battalion is going through phases where the instructor is taking over the duties and responsibilities of leaders, thus giving an extensive amount of work that instructors cannot handle themselves. These problems are breaking down their Battalion and not offering them a slight chance to obtain either star.
Other branches in the county follow a different procedure for their evaluation process. These units follow a grading scale. Just like a school’s grading scale, an A is the highest, B and C are average and D and F are below average or failing. When a unit is not average then they are not considered qualified and will will have to try to pass the inspection every year until they pass. Opposed to passing units who have their inspection every four years. If a unit does not pass after a certain amount of tried then it gets shut down. These cadets tend to have lower standards and a smaller understanding of the values and skills needed in life. Their leadership abilities are less likely to promote a higher participation among the unit. Frequently, instructors and leaders of the unit are incapable of filling in the gap that is needed to become a qualified unit.
The Air Force Battalion of Battlefield high school is highly qualified.

Even though Air Force units do not obtain a start, they still go through the evaluation process that determines their position as a distinguished unit. Their standards are extremely high and present a challenge to some cadets. However, this has helped them stand out as one of the best unit in the county. All other units that are not Army are still evaluated every four years to inspect their accreditation. However, they do not receive a start, they receive a letter grade. Battlefield has an A, meaning it is well prepared, managed and the quality of cadet is high. It is the only program in the county along with Woodbridge that is considered to display in their cadets the true meaning of an outstanding citizen and someone who had learned life

values.
Hilton’s, Osbourn Park’s, and Freedom’s Battalions are in the mid range of all the units in the county. They are all in the B or C average of their accreditation. They are considered to be passing, however, they are not as great as they should be. This means that in order to qualify for a higher later they have to prepare within their Battalion and conduct more outside events that will increase their points average. Not only that, but cadets need to obtain a better training and an improvement in the knowledge of the values of an everyday life.
Unfortunately, Garfield, Stonewall Jackson, and Potomac high school have units that do not meet the expectations of what the program should emplified to their cadets. At the moment all of these Battalions are following under a D average because if they were under an F then their program would be closed down. When units are close to failing, the 4th Brigade, or the U.S. personnel in charge of all JROTC programs need to try to pass the inspection again a year later and show improvement. If improvement is shown, then their letter grade can increase and it becomes a qualified unit. Now, take a moment and and think if you were a parent or a student thinking about joining a JROTC program, if you would let your child or you as a student would join a unit that does not have right qualifications to teach life values and promote citizenship but rather promote the idea of failure. It is something that a parent or a student would absolutely need to take into consideration. These type of units tend to be isolated and put apart from others in order to get them fuctioning in the proper way. That means that cadets lose the ability to participate in teams and events that they took part in.
Years of leadership training have greatly impacted my life and help me see and understand things that most people can’t when it comes to managing a JROTC program. As a result, I am very knowledgeable when it comes to identifying and understanding the true meaning of a qualified JROTC unit. Only Woodbridge and Battlefield are considered as highly qualified JROTC units for their outstanding scored during their accreditation process. However, the rest of the county’s JROTC units do not follow understand the same category. They are less reliable for the fact that their low qualifications does not teach cadets to become better citizens or the ability to comprehend and obtain everyday life values.