ROTC: THE HIGHWAY TO LEADERSHIP
PROGRAM PREPARES PARTICIPANTS FOR MILITARY LIFE
By Nicholas Tran | Staff Writer
Each year thousands of young Americans across the country enroll in the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) in high school and college. ROTC is a leadership training program created by the United States Military that prepares students for service in the armed forces as commissioned officers after college.
The Army, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Marine Corps all have ROTC programs; The Coast Guard has a similar program called the College Student Pre-Commissioning Initiative (CSPI). Those who enroll in the ROTC and receive a scholarship are required to join the United States Military as an officer after completing ROTC and college.
There are various reasons on why someone joins ROTC or the armed forces, including benefits that come with military service or patriotism.
“I’m joining the Marine Corps because I want to give back to my community and I want to be better as a person,” said senior Isaac Mosqueda.
Those who choose to join ROTC receive educational and financial benefits like scholarships for school, while also having a full college experience. According to Today’s Military, scholarships cover full or partial tuition, as well as fees and books. Additional financial benefits include a monthly stipend for four years. All of these benefits are in exchange for mandatory military service after completing the program.
“It’s a great way to help pay for your studies,” said financial planning teacher Gage Garcia, who served with the Air National Guard for five years. “I think that doing it in college, especially if you’re a person who doesn’t have other extracurriculars, gives you something else to focus on besides studies, which I think is really important.”
After completion of ROTC, graduates earn an officer commission and go to the Basic Officer Leaders’ Course to receive training in their specific branch. After completing training, these newly commissioned officers are given new responsibilities and are put in charge of a platoon of soldiers, using their experience from ROTC and their training to lead and guide their platoon. Kapaun Mt. Carmel Class of 2021 graduate Cole McAuliffe, who is an officer in the Kansas Air National Guard, has been serving for the past five years and is an ROTC graduate from Wichita State University,
“I joined the ROTC because it was recommended to me through a National Guard recruiter after I got a really high score on the ASVAB which is like your test for the military,” McAuliffe said. “I think it’s a great option. There’s tons of money and scholarships out there so you’ll graduate debt-free and you make tons of friends and you make so many connections.”
The ROTC also has a similar program for high school students called Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) that focuses on youth character development with the JROTC’s motto being, “To Motivate Young People to be Better Citizens.” The JROTC is found in many high schools across the country with the program being offered as a class for academic credit. JROTC offers co-curricular activities like military drill competitions and the Raider challenge, among other activities. Completion of all four years of JROTC during high school can allow graduates to be enlisted into a higher-rank if they choose to join the military. Unlike the ROTC, graduates from the JROTC are not obligated to join the military after they graduate from high school.
“You have to consider it very carefully, knowing that you’re going to dedicate several years to it, but also I think it’s great for developing discipline, leadership, and, you know, if you’re a person that really doesn’t have an idea of what you want to do, it could be something that helps springboard you into something that is useful,” Garcia said.