Abigail Benoit and Sarah Johnson can get a good night’s sleep now.
Benoit and Johnson are lieutenant colonels in the JROTC programs at MacArthur High School and Eisenhower High School, respectively, and have spent considerable time recently preparing for their school’s Junior Program Accreditation. Both said a lot was riding on the outcome of the inspection, which is conducted once every three years.
“It is extremely important, the future of our battalion lies on this. If we fail, we don’t have a program next year,” Benoit said.
EHS Command Sgt. Maj. Gavin Mielke said the process was to test the battalion “to see if we are a JROTC program of excellence.” He said the inspection could earn cadets the right to wear a star on their uniform for another three years.
“If we lose that star, it would be shameful,” Johnson said.
Johnson said the inspection is important for another reason.
“A lot of cadets come to the program hoping to pursue a military career. This lets them know what it is like to get inspected,” Johnson said.
Evaluations at each school were conducted by Gregory Thomas and Teresa Agu, civilians with the Department of Defense who conduct inspections at about 100 schools each year; drill sergeants from Fort Sill; and local recruiters. Cadets made presentations to Thomas and Agu about their respective programs before undergoing a uniform inspection conducted by the drill sergeants. A marching drill and color guard drill also were evaluated.
Agu explained why the accreditation is so important.
“It means so much,” she said. “Students can go on to receive Congressional appointments to the military academies such as West Point or be eligible for scholarships that JROTC offers. And it looks good on your resume.”
Benoit said she spent about two weeks preparing for the inspection, which included briefings every morning, lots of late nights studying her briefings, polishing the presentation and even cleaning the building before the inspectors arrived.
“It is a lot of pressure,” she said.
Benoit said the last time MHS underwent the accreditation process, she was just a freshman and a JROTC squad member.
“I knew what to expect, but I didn’t know how it was going to go in my position,” she said of this year’s evaluation. “I didn’t know what to fully expect of myself.”
She said she hopes today’s freshmen, who will be seniors for the next accreditation, will know what to expect.
“I hope they will mostly realize it isn’t as bad as it seems,” she said. “Because they have experienced it, they can be more relaxed and chill.”
The hard work Johnson, Benoit and their respective cadets put in paid off. MacArthur received a score of 100 and EHS received a 97, allowing them to be called an Honor Unit with Distinction, which is the highest honor.