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US Army JROTC

Junior ROTC's mission to motivate young people to be better citizens has changed very little since 1916 when Congress passed the National Defense Act. However, the tradition of combining formal education with military studies goes back as far as the ancient Greeks. Centuries before JROTC existed, the Greeks, Romans, feudal Europeans, and Japanese had their own versions.

In the United States, JROTC had its beginnings in Norwich, Vermont. In 1819, Captain Alden Partridge, a former Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, founded the American Literary, Scientific, and Military Academy in Norwich, Vermont. This academy is now known as Norwich University. Military studies were a major part of the academy's course work. Captain Partridge felt that if his cadets were not prepared to defend their country's rights, their education was incomplete.

In addition to extensive drill practice and physical training (including marches of up to 50 miles per day), the cadets studied Latin, Greek, Hebrew, French, English, 10 types of mathematics, five types of law, and military history dating back to biblical times. Captain Partridge's Academy was so successful that the idea of combining military studies with regular classes spread to other schools in the United States.

Army JROTC is active in more than 1,460 high schools worldwide: in all 50 states of the United States, the District of Columbia, Asia, Europe, the Caribbean, and other locations where the United States has an extended presence.

JROTC prepares high school students for responsible leadership roles while making them aware of the benefits of citizenship. Classroom and outside activities, including service learning projects, become opportunities to acquire the knowledge, discipline, and sense of responsibility that are necessary to take charge of one's future. The result is responsible cadets who are sure of themselves, can think on their own, and can express their ideas and opinions clearly and concisely. Junior ROTC cadets acquire proficiency in basic military skills (such as drill and ceremonies, first aid, and map reading) that are necessary for working effectively as a member of a team.

They learn the importance of citizenship through American history as it relates to America's culture and future from the Revolutionary period to the present. And they learn about the dangers of substance abuse and the importance of mental management, including goal setting and positive self-talk. All JROTC programs undergo a series of inspections to ensure that they are maintaining expected standards. Programs undergo a Formal Inspection every three years.

The qualified military available (QMA) population is an estimate that removes the military and institutionalized populations and high school dropouts from the total population. The estimated 17-21 year old QMA population for FY05 is 17.1 million and is projected to grow by approximately 1.2M to 18.3 million by FY2010. Although Caucasians will remain the largest race segment of both the total and QMA youth populations in FY05, note the difference in representation of the race segments between these two populations. Caucasians will comprise 63.4% of the total youth population but will be 66.9% of the QMA population. In the total youth population, Hispanics represent the second largest segment followed by the African-American segment. However, in the QMA youth population the African-American segment is the second largest while Hispanics are third.

In general, propensity toward military service in the 16-19 year old segment of the market has declined over the past 20 years. Propensity spiked in response to the events of 11 September 2001, but has remained fairly stable since the mid 1990s. DoD Youth Polls conducted in 2003 indicate a slight increase in propensity. Much of this increase represents a shift whereby the number of respondents who "Definitely Will Not" join the military has decreased while the number of respondents who "Probably Will" join the military has increased.

Market conditions in FY05 were similar in many regards to that of the early to mid 1990's. In the first half of the 1990's the economy was emerging from a mild recession, society had high opinions of the military as a result of the successes of Desert Storm, and propensity was coming down from a spike also resulting from the Gulf War. As the economy began to pick up and propensity began to stagnate, The Army began to find it more difficult to achieve its accessions goals in the mid 1990s.

In FY05, the economy continued to recover from the stronger recession of early 2000. The job market for individuals in the prime market will continue to improve. Continued Army presence in Afghanistan and Iraq will increase awareness among influencers and potential applicants. Whether that is a positive or negative influence on recruiting will depend on the national leadership and media portrayal of events and the experiences that Soldiers relate to friends and family at the grass roots level.

The Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) and continuing presence in Iraq and Afghanistan has kept the military, and particularly The Army, at the forefront of the Nation's attention. In previous years, the declining veteran population and military drawdown raised concerns that family experience with the military was in sharp decline.

Now, large-scale activation and deployment of Army Reserve and National Guard Soldiers in addition to active duty troops has drastically increased the footprint of the military in American society. Despite some anti-war protests and debate over the decision to go to war, the public's patriotism and confidence in the military remain high. A sustained casualty rate, though fairly low, is contributing to dissatisfaction with the Administration's foreign policy, but media reporting of Army and individual Soldier programs and actions remains generally favorable. The reality of war is a factor in making adults less likely to recommend the military; however, the most significant factor for both influencers and prospects in not considering The Army continues to be the desire for a college education. Notable changes are already occurring in the college market based on the war on terror.

Immediately after 9-11, the interest among college students on campus in participating in The Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) or choosing enlistment dropped. Other students did not appreciably increase or remained ambivalent to the surge of patriotic feelings after the attacks. In essence, college students appeared to not follow the national enthusiasm when it came to actual participation in war. The percentage of students believing that Army ROTC was not just bad for them, but bad for anyone, actually increased between the Spring of 2001 and Spring of 2002. In order to address these recruitment issues, the Army hired the Wakefield Database and Marketing Company, BeNOW, to create a database with the demographic and contact information of approximately 30 million 16-to-25-year-old Americans. This decision, in conjunction with Section 9528 of the Federal No Child Left Behind Acti which legislates that schools receiving Federal funding must give access to the military for recruitment efforts, has been a source of contention.

JROTC has expanded to 1555 schools today and to every state in the nation and American schools overseas. Cadet enrollment has grown to 273,000 cadets with 3,900 professional instructors in the classrooms. Comprised solely of active duty Army retirees, the JROTC instructors serve as mentors developing the outstanding young citizens of our country. Federal law prohibits official chapters at the elementary-school level.

1 14 Brigade

Geographic Alignment U.S. Army Cadet Command

2 Jun 03

ROTC

1st Brigade - 20 Battalions

2nd Brigade - 19 Battalions

3rd Brigade - 18 Battalions

4th Brigade - 19 Battalions

5th Brigade - 18 Battalions

6th Brigade - 20 Battalions

7th Brigade - 18 Battalions

8th Brigade - 21 Battalions

9th Brigade - 21 Battalions

10th Brigade - 22 Battalions

11th Brigade - 20 Battalions

12th Brigade - 20 Battalions

13th Brigade - 17 Battalions

14th Brigade - 19 Battalions