The U.S. Army Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, or JROTC, was authorized through the passage of the National Defense Act of 1916, which enable the establishment of organized JRTOC programs in both public and private educational institutions. Expanded in 1964 to promote participation in all military services, today’s JROTC programs are required by U.S. code to “instill in students in United States secondary educational institutions the values of citizenship, service to the United States, and personal responsibility and a sense of accomplishment.” This task is summed up in the mission statement of JROTC, “To Motivate Young People to be Better Citizens.”
The U.S. Army’s JROTC today operates in more than 1,700 high schools (both public and private), military institutions, and in correctional centers spanning the United States and in overseas locations. Roughly 40 percent of JRTOC programs are operating in inner-city schools with a student population of 50 percent minorities, providing access to the program’s numerous benefits to a population that may not have access to programs offering similar encouragements to character growth and development. It has also expanded access to female students, with female Cadets making up about 40 percent of the Cadet population.
Leading the Cadets is the Army JRTOC faculty, comprising nearly 4,000 instructors who have retired from active duty, Reserve, or National Guard service