September 19, 2019
Defense Primer: Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps
(JROTC)
Overview and Mission
allowances the instructor would receive if recalled to active
The Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) is a
duty and (2) the instructor’s retired pay entitlement. For
voluntary high school (grades 9-12) program of instruction
example, if annual military retired pay is $24,000 and total
administrated by the Department of Defense (DOD)
active duty pay and allowances is $52,000 the institution
through the military departments. The purpose of JROTC,
would pay the instructor the difference of $28,000. The
according to 10 U.S.C. §2031, is “to instill in students in
military may reimburse the institution $14,000 (one-half of
United States secondary educational institutions the value
$28,000). Additional sample salary calculations can be
of citizenship, service to the United States, and personal
found in DOD Instruction 1205.13).
responsibility and a sense of accomplishment. JROTC was
established as an Army program by the National Defense
Curriculum
Act of 1916 (P.L. 64-85) and in 1964 expanded to the Navy
JROTC courses are taught over a 3- or 4-year period. The
and Air Force. Congress authorized Coast Guard units at
curriculum typically includes academic coursework on
two specific schools: one in 1989 (P.L. 101-225) and one in
topics such as leadership and ethics, civics, history, and
2005 (P.L. 109-241).
health and wellness. There are also service-specific courses
such as Aerospace Science or Seamanship and Navigation.
There are over 3,000 JROTC units operating in every state
In addition, units offer extracurricular activities such as
and in DOD schools overseas. Estimated enrollment in the
color guard/drill team, marksmanship, and field trips to
JROTC program is more than 500,000 students.
military installations.
Table 1. Distribution of JROTC Unit Sponsorship
Establishing a JROTC Program
Educational institutions interested in hosting a unit must
Service
Number of Units
apply to the respective military department. By law,
Army
1,701*
participating host schools are required to maintain
participation levels of 10% of the student body, or 100
Navy
583
students, whichever is less. The military departments
Marine Corps
271
establish criteria for unit placement. For example, the Army
maintains an Order of Merit List, based on a point system
Air Force
920
that awards credit to institutions for categories such as Title
I status under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
Coast Guard
2
(P.L. 89-10, as amended), local indicators of need (e.g.,
Source: FY2020 budget justification documents (J-books) for the
high unemployment or illiteracy), student enrolment, school
Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. *Army data is for FY2016;
financial solvency, and fair and equitable distribution of
updated data is not available in Army J-books.
JROTC programs among states.
JROTC Instructors
Schools may also apply to host or convert an existing
Most JROTC instructors are retired or reserve officers and
JROTC unit to a National Defense Cadet Corps (NDCC)
enlisted non-commissioned officers (NCOs) who serve as
per 10 U.SC. §2035. NDCC statutory and regulatory
employees of the school district. Service level policies
requirements are similar to host a JROTC unit. However,
require JROTC schools to have a minimum of one officer
instructor salaries and other costs for NDCCs are the
(Senior Military Instructor) and one NCO (Junior Military
responsibility of the host institution and not subsidized by
Instructor) on staff. Requirements to qualify as a JROTC
the government. There are approximately 110 NDCCs
instructor (e.g., education, certification) are specified in law
nationwide.
(10 U.S.C §2033). Instructors are also required to abide by
standards set by their parent service, as well as the policies
Federal Funding
set by their host institution.
Beyond instructor salaries mentioned earlier, the military
departments also fund uniforms, cadet travel, training aids,
Retired service members who are eligible for retired pay
text books, educational materials, and other unit operating
may continue to receive such pay while employed as an
expenses. Host institutions provide classroom space,
instructor. By law (10 U.S.C. §2031), military departments
facilities, and administrative support for the unit. Congress
may subsidize instructor positions by reimbursing the host
annually appropriates JROTC funds as part of DOD’s
institution for a portion of the salary. DOD financial
Operation and Maintenance (O&M) and Military Personnel
regulations refer to the salary that a school must pay the
(MILPERS) budget. JROTC funding for all of the Services
instructor as the Minimum Instructor Pay (MIP). The MIP
is the difference between (1) the active duty pay and
https://crsreports.congress.gov

---

link to page 2 Defense Primer: Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC)
in FY2019 was $386 million, with the Army program
evenly distributed geographically and tend to be
accounting for about half of the total (see Table 2).
overrepresented in the South Atlantic states relative to the
national average. Public high schools with larger-than-
Table 2. DOD Funding for JROTC
average minority populations and in schools serving
Enacted base funding in thousands, FY2019
economically disadvantaged populations are also
overrepresented as JROTC host schools.
Service
O&M
MILPERS
Total
Higher representation in economically disadvantaged and
Army
$178,352
$28,728
$207,080
larger/more urban schools has largely been a function of
service-level policy decisions that award preference for
Navy
$55,097
$15,231
$70,328
Title I schools and other structural program requirements
Marine
(e.g., minimum student participation, availability of
$24,607
$3,860
$28,467
Corps
instructors). While advocates for JROTC point to positive
outcomes for high-risk youth, some critics of JROTC have
Air Force
$60,908
$19,205
$80,133
argued that it unfairly targets low-income and minority
Total
$318,964
$67,024
$386,988
communities for military recruiting.
Source: DOD Office of the Comptrol er, Budget Documentation
How does participation affect recruiting?
for FY2020.
Participation in JROTC does not incur any military
Considerations for Congress
obligation and military recruitment is not a stated objective
in statute or policy. Nevertheless, the military services
In Congress’s role in funding and overseeing the JROTC
intend to provide favorable exposure to military careers and
programs, there are several areas for consideration.
the program has potential to increase the propensity for
military service. Some researchers have found a positive
What are some of the program benefits?
correlation between JROTC and enlistment while others
While research on comparable student populations has been
have found that the impact of JROTC participation on
limited, several studies have found positive correlations
military enlistment is negligible when accounting for self-
between JROTC participation and student outcomes,
selection into JROTC.
including school attendance and graduation rates, improved
test performance, higher self-esteem for female students,
JROTC participants who pursue enlistment or appointment
and lower rates of disciplinary action.
as an officer may receive some benefits at the time of entry
JROTC funding may also benefit schools through support
into the service. For example, per DOD policy (DODI
for teaching and extracurricular activities. However, some
1205.13), a student successfully completing at least two
critics have questioned whether cost-sharing requirements
academic years of the JROTC program is entitled to
create a burden for poorer school districts.
advanced promotion to the grade of no less than E-2 upon
initial enlistment in an Active or Reserve component. The
How many units should DOD support?
military departments may award the grade of E-3 for
The number of JROTC units that the services can support
successful completion of three academic years. In addition,
depends on annual budget levels and funding priorities.
the Secretaries of the military departments may nominate
Statutory limits on the number of JROTC programs were
up to 20 honor graduates from JROTC units designated by
gradually increased over time, and in 2001, Congress
the Secretaries as honor schools for appointment to one of
repealed all limits (P.L. 107-107 §537). Subsequent bills in
the three military service academies (10 U.S.C.§8454 for
2006 (P.L. 109-364 §541) and 2008 (P.L. §548) directed
Naval Academy, §7442 for U.S. Military Academy, and
the Secretaries of the military departments to expand the
§9442 for Air Force Academy.)
program to additional schools with a target of 3,700 units
Other considerations
by September 30, 2020.
Some additional questions that Congress may consider
Is the distribution of units equitable?
when thinking about future investments in JROTC
A continued concern for Congress has been the equitable
programs include:
distribution of JROTC units across various demographic,
 To what extent does JROTC curriculum help meet
socioeconomic, and geographic indicators. Language in the
program and national goals? Should additional courses
Senate report to accompany the FY2015 DOD
be required or incentivized?
Appropriations Bill (S.Rept. 113-211) expressed concern
about JROTC participation at the individual and school
 Should the program be structured or funded differently
levels, and asked for DOD to report on “any plans to ensure
to encourage participation or remove entry barriers for
adequate representation of all regions in the United States
certain types of schools or sub-populations?
to ensure the capabilities of the Armed Forces to recruit
from a diverse background to sustain the all-volunteer

force.”
Kristy N. Kamarck, Specialist in Military Manpower
A 2016 report from the RAND Corporation found that
JROTC is generally underrepresented in rural and remote
Xavier L. Arriaga, Research Associate
areas. In addition, JROTC units in public schools are not
IF11313
https://crsreports.congress.gov

---

Defense Primer: Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC)


Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to
congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress.
Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has
been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the
United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be
reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include
copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you
wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.

https://crsreports.congress.gov | IF11313 · VERSION 1 · NEW

---