Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Senior Jaymi Jaworoski’s plans of going into the army have been encouraged by her participation in JROTC. SUPPLEMENT December 2010 Sydney Olshan AT ATTENTION Leadership skills and discipline are two of the most important lessons JROTC stu- dents learn. These attributes have helped them succeed in many competitions and events. www.thewestwordonline.com Photo by Elissa Miolene / Photo Manager Illustrator
Citation preview
Sydney OlshanIllustrator
Westhill is a sprawling school, with over 2,000 students and a multitude of elective courses. Standing out among these classes is JROTC, or the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corp. JROTC is a program that teaches life lessons such as leadership, self confidence, and responsibility.
Run by Major Weber and Ser-geant Finick, JROTC has over 100 participants. It is affiliated with ex-tracurricular activities such as the exhibition Drill team, Cadet Color Guard, the Raider Competition team, and a JROTC student government. Students who participate in JROTC acquire skills for life, an activity to put on their resume, and great friends.
Contrary to popular belief, JROTC is not an army recruit-ment organization but a leadership class. Sergeant Major Finick said, “[JROTC] is mainly about learning leadership skills. We cover a wide repertoire, but the general message we teach is leadership.”
Students engage in physical training and survival skills such as navigation and first aid to gain dis-cipline. Lessons on military con-cepts and U.S. history teach the ca-dets to respect their country. First year JROTC students are taught the basics of the class and then pass on their knowledge to the next year’s freshmen, initiating bond-
ing and giving the upperclassmen the patience that is acquired with teaching.
JROTC is a learning experi-ence for many students, providing them with the skills necessary for their futures. JROTC’s mission is to motivate young people to be-come better citizens, a standard these students hold themselves to every day.
Sophomore Diego Caro said, “[JROTC] makes me a more re-sponsible and disciplined person. It sets goals for me and teaches me how to be more successful in life.”
JROTC is not simply a class about the general concepts of achievement but also a rigorous full-year course that requires de-termination and mental dexter-ity. The drill team members must memorize drill and ceremony commands. They compete in three groups; the unarmed team, which marched without rifles the armed team, which marches with replica rifles, and the exhibition team.
Students participating in Color Guard are split into two teams; team A, which competes dur-ing drill team season, and team B, which performs during school events and assemblies. The Color Guard competes with the Drill team in competition but are judged sepa-rately. They carry flags during Drill team competitions and, in the case of armed Color Guard, they carry replica rifles.
The Raiders are JROTC’s ath-
letic team, which engages in com-petitions of strength, endurance, land navigation, and teamwork. Sergent Major Finick said, “They [the Raider team] compete in day- long grueling physical and mental challenges. They are like the var-sity team of JROTC.”
JROTC contains a JROTC gov-ernment, a group of senior students that formulates ideas and enact re-form to better JROTC.
The hierarchy of JROTC is a ladder climbed with personal expe-rience and achievements. The most honorable positions are the Cadet Officers followed by the Cadet Per-sonnel and Battalions.
JROTC’s achievements are ap-parent from the display in the art wing’s trophy case. They have won numerous events for Drill team, the Raiders, and the triennial Bat-talion Wide Inspection. Through hard work and determination, the JROTC students learn what it is to be successful.
JROTC also contributes to the community. JROTC participates annually in a Thanksgiving food drive, a winter clothing drive for shelters, a Christmas food drive, and a holiday toy drive.
One benefit of JROTC is the community of friends it inspires. “I’ve made a lot of great friends since I started JROTC,” said junior Jon Sanchez said.
A course not confined to the classroom, JROTC teaches the uni-versal lessons of success.
SUPPLEMENT December 2010 23www.thewestwordonline.com
A close look at JROTC
Senior Jaymi Jaworoski’s plans of going into the army have been encouraged by her
participation in JROTC. The Westword: Why did you join JROTC?Jaymi Jaworoski: I honestly joined JROTC not knowing much about it. I just wanted a different elective.TW: What is your position in JROTC? Are you part of any of its teams?JJ: Throughout my four years in the program, I have achieved the rank of Cadet Captain. I am also the commander of the unarmed drill team.TW: What does your position re-quire you to do?JJ: My position in the battalion is the Executive Officer. This po-sition requires me to hold weekly meetings with all of the different staff branches. In these meetings, I ensure that they are all doing their jobs and they are done on time.TW: What are your favorite as-pects of JROTC?JJ: My favorite aspect of the pro-gram is the family-like vibe that all of the cadets show. In JROTC, all of the cadets have family-like relationships with other cadets.TW: What are the requirements for being in the JROTC? For participating in the afterschool electives?JJ: In the JROTC program, the only requirement is that every ca-det has is to wear their uniforms ev-ery Wednesday and complete their work. All of our other activities,
such as Raiders, Color Guard, and Drill team, take place after school and are all optional.TW: What have you learned from being in JROTC?JJ: In JROTC, I have learned how to become a leader. In class peri-ods, I have learned how to read a topographic map, perform CPR, execute drill commands, and exer-cise appropriately.TW: Do you plan on pursuing a military path in your future? If so, how and why?JJ: After high school, I plan to join Army ROTC in college. All of the colleges I have applied [are] to major in nursing to become an Army nurse. I’ve decided on this career because I love to help peo-ple and I also enjoy the structure of the Army.TW: How many competitions have you participated in? What are they?JJ: This year as Commander of the unarmed drill team, we have com-peted in one competition [so far]. I have competed in 11 competitions altogether. Our next competition is in Newport, Rhode Island this Saturday.TW: Have you won anything?JJ: So far, Westhill has won first place in Unarmed Color Guard, first place in Facsimile Inspec-tion and second in Facsimile Regulation.
Leaders of the future
The journey of a soldier
1. JROTC
Photo by Elissa Miolene / Photo ManagerAT ATTENTION Leadership skills and discipline are two of the most important lessons JROTC stu-dents learn. These attributes have helped them succeed in many competitions and events.
