Starting this second semester, on Jan. 7, the Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (MCJROTC) has officially started taking place in the classroom. The students within the program have mostly begun training, and they have many diverse perspectives.
“It’s an amazing experience, [and] I have friends there,” sophomore Anna Stevens said. “We’re just one group of people, and we’re still expanding, but it’s a lot of fun.”
Not all students have a lot of experience with the program. Several students haven’t participated in any events or training from MCJROTC. because they hadn’t signed up for the class specifically.
“My grandparents enlisted me in this instance,” sophomore Nicholas Schoening said. “I think I am going to get along with most people.”
Some students were determined to work within the program. If for any particular reason they couldn’t participate within MCJROTC, they would choose another fitting class, club, or program.
“I would probably still do ASCC, [the Armed Services Career Club], if they still have it,” Stevens said.
The JROTC program focuses on leadership, character building, citizenship, teamwork, community service, and personal responsibility. Select members of the program have familial relations to these traits and use that to get better insight.
“I have family members that were part of the military,” sophomore Nathaniel Blackwell said. “They explained in-depth to me about [it].”
Along with those focuses, members can participate in many activities. Several of these include participating in Color Guard, Drill, Raider Challenge, and Marksmanship teams. Out of these, Color Guard is often considered one of the most important —especially in terms of honor. Color Guard in itself is a form of sport and performance. For the military, it is a ceremony that represents prestige and formalization of their respectability. The specific flag positions represent the honor and respect of the particular flag.
“On the left is the highest one, which will be the American flag,” junior Ramsey Jimenez said. “Then you have the Marine Corps banner, which will be on the right.”
These roles and positions, while they started last semester, are directly part of the program. Such roles and positions do include being a Color Guard member, part of the Marksmanship team, acting as the Battalion Commander. There are many more, but these are some of the most event-based and supporting roles. Due to what it teaches, MCJROTC gained implementation approval by the School Board. These different activities, and its recent approval, have made their coordination difficult.
“Sometimes the scheduling can be a bit off, and confusing,” Jimenez said. “It’s something that we’ve been working on and come January, we’re going to fix that up.”
Within the class, the main thing students will be doing”is physical therapy,” the military equivalent of physical training. This is to help teach determination, and worth ethic. But, the program makes it apparent for the participating individuals, that it is designed for all levels of fitness.
“The military and the program is for anyone who wants to take the time and attempt their best,” Blackwell said.
Despite the impression of this course being all seriousness, some students find certain aspects humorous. Which just goes to show that while there is training, these individuals still remain themselves.
“One thing I really want to happen is I’m gonna shave my head,” Schoening said. “A buzz cut to make myself even more bald.”
