Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (JROTC)

This year marks the 100-year anniversary of the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, otherwise known as JROTC. It has existed in many high schools nationwide since it came into existence in 1916 and, like many things, has changed with the passage of time. Originally, it was used as means to recruit students and possible candidates for the armed forces. Now, though, it is a program that teaches high school students a plethora of life skills and cultivates a sense of leadership and independence within them. It is a tradition that is likely to continue in high schools all over the United States for many years to come.
In 1916, the National Defense Act was passed. The Act brought into existence JROTC by allowing high schools to loan equipment from the military, as well as hire active duty military personnel as instructors. In its early stages, JROTC was almost a precursor to the armed forces with its military-based structure and infusion of order and discipline into an academic setting. Years later, in 1964, the Vitalization Act shifted the dynamic of the program. Most of the active duty instructors were replaced with retired veterans and it became more of a citizenship program devoted to “motivating young people to be better citizens”.

There are now 1,645 schools that have a JROTC program and roughly 281,00 cadets that are enrolled nationwide. The very center of JROTC has evolved and while cadets are still told of the opportunities available with the military, it is no longer the purpose behind the program. Instead, it focuses on helping cadets prepare for the challenges that come with adulthood by teaching them important life skills, such as time-management, teamwork, organization, etc., etc. By becoming less militaristic over the years, the JROTC program has shown that it will continue to adapt to the world around it and last for many more