I know I should have written this up sooner, but sometimes things such as the hustle and bustle of life or just plain laziness has caused me to put off this entry.
To give everyone some background and perspective, the San Francisco Board of Education has decided to terminate the JROTC program by 2009 and to end offering of credit to the program based on a "crap" vote during a board meeting on June 26, 2008. The resolution to end credits was originally shot down due to a vote deadlock on June 17, 2008. What’s interesting is that Jane Kim, one of the sponsors of the resolution was NOT present at the meeting which resulted in the deadlock. But due to some legal weaseling by Dan Kelly, a former school board member and longtime opponent of the military, he told the board that the rules don’t actually say a tie vote kills a resolution and that the rules only state that board can’t vote on the same issue a second time if a resolution loses by majority. Since a deadlock isn’t a majority, they put the vote up again on June 26, 2008. Unfortunately, two of the board members who supported the JROTC program were out of town on business on June 26, 2008, which resulted in the school board ending credits to students who take JROTC. The votes breakdown is as follows:
For Ending Credits
- Mark Sanchez, President
- Jane Kim, Commissioner
- Eric Mar, Commissioner
- Norman Yee, Commissioner
Against Ending Credits
- Kim-Shree Maufas, Vice President
- Jill Wynns, Commissioner
- Hydra Mendoza, Commissioner
So there are two things that really irk me: 1) Portrayal of JROTC as a recruiting tool and being anti-gay and 2) Termination of a program prior to having a new solution place.
First off, a little history of myself. I was in the Lowell JROTC program for all 4 years of high school. By the time of my graduation in 1988, I held the rank of Lt Col and was Battalion XO, the second highest position in the program at an individual school level. After graduation, I joined the Marines and was in it serving in the reserves for 11 years and also served in Desert Shield and Desert Storm when my unit was activated.
JROTC, while sponsored by the military, is NOT anti-gay. I knew of individuals who were gay and were in the program and I would have to say that the bonds of friendship and individual respect that were established by my predecessors and, I hope, that I instilled in my cadets was one of the fundamental building blocks in leadership development is learning to accept the differences and finding commonalities to forge an effective unit. Notice I said leadership development. Not learning how to shoot and kill. Not how to be a good little soldier. I still remember my first day as company commander and seeing all the new freshman in my class. Looking insecure, having doubts about whether they should have taken PE instead of JROTC, and wondering what they got themselves into especially when I called the room to attention and then started the rollcall telling the cadets to answer with a loud resounding "Here sir!" if I called out their name and they were present.
Right after rollcall was completed, I had my entire class sit and asked them, "What do you think JROTC is about and what are you hoping to get out of it?" Some of the responses I got were, how to shoot weapons, how to administer first aid, how to train to be a soldier. All good answers, but not the right one. It was NOT my job to steer these cadets into the military and I can vouch for all the other cadets that have gone through that none of them were actively recruiting for the military by their fellow cadets. My JOB was to instill leadership in all of the cadets so that they could be future leaders themselves. They were here to learn about responsibility, esprit de corp, motivation, teamwork and mutual respect. All things that, whether you decided to join the military or not, would be useful skills in a future career.
And it’s the mutual respect part that was a very important part of the leadership training. As a leader, you understood that respect was a two way street. It didn’t matter the color of your skin, your sex or sexual orientation, your height or width. What always mattered to me was, could you fulfill the duties of your position and could you instill leadership and teamwork in others. That type of mentality was what I learned and continue to bring with me on all aspects of my life.
One now might make the argument, if it’s not a military recruiting tool, then why did you join the Marines? Good question. While it’s true that being in JROTC can open you up to recruiters and calls from them to join, you always have the option of saying "No." No one will come over with a gun to your head and force you to join. It’s ironic, that the military is what helped keep America free and gives YOU the choice to choose to serve or not. And if the military were using JROTC as a recruiting tool, then why didn’t my long time best friend from 1st grade, the best man at my wedding, one of my son’s other godfather and my commanding officer when I was Battalion XO in JROTC, join the military? You’d think that with such similar backgrounds and such close friendship that we would have made the same choices, no? Oh wait…that’s right, JROTC taught us to think independently.
So why did I join? I signed up for the Marines as a backup in case I couldn’t find a job after college, that if civilian jobs were scarce, I’d have a plan where I’d have some means of taking care of myself. I also come from a family with military traditions. My grandfather was a general for the Nationalist forces in China before the Communist take over. My father served in the Taiwanese Air Force and Cavalry as an officer. Me, I stayed in the NCO ranks, realizing that was where I wanted to be. Being close to all the new and young Marines, helping them to understand that it wasn’t blind obedience to orders that I was looking for, but motivated individuals who wanted to take charge and be responsible for completing tasks and missions. That it was their duty to do the best job possible with the resources that they had.
So what made me quit? Married life, job responsibilities and wanting to have a bit more time to myself were all factors in my decision to leave the Marine Corps after 11 years. If I had stayed in, I would have hit 20 years this month of service.
Am I anti-gay? If I were, then why is one of the godfather’s for my son gay? I know the military has a policy of "Don’t ask, Don’t tell", but that policy doesn’t apply to JROTC and I’ve never heard of any cadet being told that they had to quit the program if they were gay or lesbian. If anything, the JROTC cadets are taught that difference is good and it’s always using your strengths and similarities, instead of your weaknesses or differences, to achieve a common goal.
Going to the second topic, what options do the current JROTC students have in regards to a leadership development course that is established and has a proven track record at this time? What? There aren’t any? We PLAN on having something within ethnic studies? I just love how the San Francisco Board of Education has thought this out. Before we have a replacement program in place, let’s get rid of the current one. That’s the plan??? So we have no proven replacement, no new track record for the new program, let alone the trained instructors and materials for the new leadership program. Who’s bright idea was that??? Don’t they relieve military personnel for that type of thinking? Don’t they fire CEO’s and VP’s for that level of preparedness? Time to vote out certain members of the school board come November?
For me, I plan to make my vote count in November’s election and any future elections. I plan on telling my friends and family which candidates I support and which ones I don’t. Will it make a difference? Maybe…maybe not, but it’s the attempt that’s important. Am I mad that they’re trying to end the JROTC program? No…just disappointed that a school program that has had such a high success rate in developing future leaders is being killed off without a replacement program in place and punishing JROTC because of it’s military sponsorship. Learning leadership is a step by step process and not something you learn in a book. The theories are there, but it’s the practical application that’s the learning experience.
As a former cadet of the JROTC program, I’m really fed up with all the attacks on the program by people who’ve never experienced the program, have preconceived notions of the program and not facts, and have made false and/or derogatory comments and statements in print and during the hearings. I’ve never heard of a cadet being kicked out due to their sexual
orientation and I’ve kept in touch with the instructors and some of the
cadets I’ve had the pleasure of serving with in my four years in the
program. JROTC is a leadership program and based on the actions of the members of the school board, I really question if any of them understand what leadership is. What kind of leader kills off a something with a proven track record of success before a new program is established? As I said, I’d be less upset if there was a viable alternative, which
STILL DOES NOT EXIST. School Board…how about a wake up call? I can
hear some of you snoozing back there…
One other comment:
"If students really love the program, they’ll take it anyway," said
board President Mark Sanchez.
Does that mean, Mr. Sanchez, that if you love your job as President of
the board that you’ll do it for free? Maybe take your salary and put it
back into the public school coffers to help the school district out? Or
is that silly, wishful thinking? Was that a quick sound bite that you
thought was a smart response? Sounds bites do bite back and that
response was flawed on so many levels.
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This is great info to know.
Glad to be able to help!