By Matt de Simone
During the monthly Botetourt County School Board meeting last Thursday, Superintendent Dr. Jonathan Russ discussed division leaders and high school principals recently observing two local JROTC programs on January 23. The site visits provided an opportunity to learn about the structure and requirements for establishing a JROTC program in Russ’s monthly report.
Buchanan District representative Jenny Wilson then asked Russ about where BCPS is in terms of having a JROTC in Botetourt schools moving forward.
Russ explained that one of the focus points of the Strategic Direction Survey last year was to get students ready for work, school, or military following graduation. BCPS is “in the very early stages of observing and getting to see how these programs operate in other schools,” Russ said. He noted that the instructors of the observed programs were willing to answer any questions BCPS may have about a JROTC program.
Russ recommended to have a JROTC program through the Botetourt Technical Education Center (BTEC). He thinks it is more “advantageous” for the division to bring students to a central location as opposed to the expense of having JROTC programs at Lord Botetourt and James River High Schools. Russ said those decisions would be made “down the road” and that further discussions amongst the School Board about bringing a JROTC program to Botetourt will be planned for the future.
