Army JROTC Overview

Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps

"To Motivate Young People To Be Better Citizens"

Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) is the Department of Defense's (DOD) largest youth development program and serves as a character and leadership development program for our nation's high school students. High school students enrolled in JROTC are called "Cadets." There are approximately 314,000 Cadets enrolled in JROTC in 1,731 schools, led by 4,000 instructors.

Vision: Providing a quality citizenship, character, and leadership development program, while fostering partnerships with communities and educational institutions. 

Mission: "To Motivate Young People to be Better Citizens."

JROTC is a service to our nation, in that it provides Cadets the motivation and skills to improve physical fitness; remain drug free; think critically and creatively; communicate effectively; work as a team member; graduate from high school; pursue meaningful careers especially in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM); and become successful citizens.

JROTC works to instill in students in secondary educational institutions, the values of citizenship, service to the community and the United States, personal responsibility, and a sense of accomplishment. It incorporates 21st Century learning, supportive of school-wide expectations for learning results promotes healthy lifestyles, develops leadership, strengthens positive self-motivation and enhances global awareness to include providing a historical perspective of military service.

The JROTC Program

The Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) is a program offered to high schools that teaches students character education, student achievement, wellness, leadership, and diversity. It is a cooperative effort between the Army and the high schools to produce successful students and citizens, while fostering in each school a more constructive and disciplined learning environment. The goals of the JROTC program are to teach students to:

Act with integrity and personal accountability as they lead others to succeed in a diverse and global workforce

• Engage civic and social concerns in the community, government, and society

• Graduate prepared to excel in post-secondary options and career pathways

• Make decisions that promote positive social, emotional, and physical health

• Value the role of the military and other service organizations

With the school’s support, the JROTC program achieves these goals by using a world-class 21st Century, technology driven, student centered curriculum. The curriculum consists of education in citizenship, leadership, social and communication skills, physical fitness and wellness, geography, and civics.

The curriculum is facilitated and taught by retired Army personnel. Qualified retired Army personnel are employed by the schools to teach the JROTC curriculum. JROTC teacher qualifications are based on military experience, maturity, stability, and leadership acquired over 20 years of service to our nation. To safeguard the viability of the JROTC program, the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Education endorse the proposition that states recognize that JROTC instructors are certified to teach JROTC and the array of subject areas embedded (e.g., Physical Education, Health/Wellness, Civics, etc.).

JROTC is a successful program, making substantial contributions to students, schools, and communities which benefit greatly from its presence. The benefits of JROTC are reflected in metrics impacting all schools in the U.S.