Why do people assume...?

[C/SSGT Seifer]

Why do people assume that JROTC is a club? They also seem to think that we are going to be deployed or drafted right after high school. Also why is it that every other event in the school gets an honorable mention and we don't? For example, last year we went to nationals and did exceptionally well, coincidentally the marching band went to their national competition as well. We both got first place and the day we got back there was an announcement about how the marching band took first, but nothing about us. Even the football team is more liked than us and their record is 0-12!

[PhilK]

Originally Posted by C/SSGT Seifer

Why do people assume that JROTC is a club?

Go to your school web site and see where JROTC is listed. Some schools it is listed under clubs, some under extra curricular activities, some under some other area.

They also seem to think that we are going to be deployed or drafted right after high school

Because no one has told them what the program does.

Also why is it that every other event in the school gets an honorable mention and we don't? For example, last year we went to nationals and did exceptionally well, coincidentally the marching band went to their national competition as well. We both got first place and the day we got back there was an announcement about how the marching band took first, but nothing about us. Even the football team is more liked than us and their record is 0-12!

To be blunt...your football team and your band most likely bring in more money. Have more people involved with it. And have a higher percentage of scholarship winners in those areas. How many of your football players and band members will get scholarships to various schools versus the number of JROTC students will get ROTC scholarships?

To a school board and PTA, the band and football team are important parts of the school...the JROTC program is just a "nice to have".

[TruBlu]

Originally Posted by C/SSGT Seifer

Why do people assume that JROTC is a club?

It acts like a club, looks like a club, operates as a club; to the average non-JROTC high school student, it's a club. You must remember that JROTC is a secondary school program, not a specifically a military organization. Every cadet is a student first.

Originally Posted by C/SSGT Seifer

They also seem to think that we are going to be deployed or drafted right after high school.

That's a matter of lack of education as to what the program is. All this means is that your corps/instructors/administrators need to do a better job at getting the point of JROTC across: leadership program.

Originally Posted by C/SSGT Seifer

Also why is it that every other event in the school gets an honorable mention and we don't? For example, last year we went to nationals and did exceptionally well, coincidentally the marching band went to their national competition as well. We both got first place and the day we got back there was an announcement about how the marching band took first, but nothing about us. Even the football team is more liked than us and their record is 0-12!

Well we have here, is a failure to communicate (just had to do it...). The people announcing news and events at schools do not write them, they simply compile what has been given to them. Make sure the office/lady-that is-so-nice-to-tell-us-what's-happened knows that JROTC is doing all sorts of good things (this may help fix problem two). And as far as image in the school, that's simply a student body perception, which to be entirely honest about, you can't do much about. And this comes from one experienced in being of a unit that captivates a positive interest from only a small portion of the corps, not to mention the school as a whole.

My advice: Keep your head up and focus on looking and doing your best. Don't yell at cadets in the hall when they are doing something they shouldn't in uniform. Save things like that for later seeing as though public embarrassment is not a good learning tool, but a tool used by those that can't properly instruct someone.

Originally Posted by PhilK

To a school board and PTA, the band and football team are important parts of the school...the JROTC program is just a "nice to have".

Indeed. I didn't even think about the monetary aspects of it (you posted as I was composing mine), and I'm sure that is one of the greatest factors of a 'back seat' JROTC program.

[C/SSGT Seifer]

As far as more people being involved in football, that is not true. Our football team is fairly small, containing just enough people to form a team. What I want to know how it is possible for a loser football team who hasn't won a game all season is raking in money for the school than a drill team who gets first place overall at (virtually) every competition it participates in.

[PhilK]

Originally Posted by C/SSGT Seifer

As far as more people being involved in football, that is not true. Our football team is fairly small, containing just enough people to form a team. What I want to know how it is possible for a loser football team who hasn't won a game all season is raking in money for the school than a drill team who gets first place overall at (virtually) every competition it participates in.

How much do you charge for tickets at the stadium when you perform?

And thus you have your answer....

[Drill for life]

Well that is how people think. Every uniform day(wednsday) someone ask's me "Hey when are you going to Iraq". I don't even explain it to them. I just tell them tomorrow. If your unit issues and wears ACU's(It should, the AJROTC BDU wearout date already passed) it gets really bad(the whole Iraq, Afghanistan incident's)