It’s the end of the year, and with it comes many familiar activities. Course selections, exams, and notably, the leaving of seniors and the transition to new leadership for clubs and other groups. Many clubs and groups like band or the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) use the end of the school year to begin their selection process for leadership positions for the next school year. In the same vein, seniors moving on from these groups take this opportunity to impart their experience and wisdom to future leaders.

One of the many appeals of a program like JROTC is its diverse opportunities for students to learn leadership skills. Graduating seniors leave empty spots to fill and there are a variety of ways to choose new leaders. Elections, applications or interviews may be used to determine who receives a leadership position.

JROTC, for example, holds an interview process called boards for cadets interested in leadership positions.

“So, ROTC has these things called boards at the end of every year,” Marksmanship Commander Grace Dillender (12) said. “Basically, anybody who wants to go for a leadership position goes up for those boards and they’re kind of like an interview process. I have three cadets, I think, going up for Marksmanship commander … Sergeant Major — the lead ROTC teacher — and I will have a conversation after all of those interviews are completed, and we’ll make a decision [on who gets the position] based on how well they did in their interview.”

Anyone is allowed to go up for these boards, but specific students are expected to compete or have been selected as prime candidates for a leadership position. Seniors passing on these positions keep an eye out for specific students they think may be able to succeed.

“So pretty much all of this year — all of the JROTC teams have something called the executive officer (XO), so it’s basically like, a number two to the commander,” Dillender said. “This year, my XO was Henry Chipley. And so I’ve been training him how to set up the target system, how to fix some of the problems related to it, and then also how to teach people how to shoot. So it’s been like kind of a process all year teaching … him how to be the next Marksmanship Commander. But I also try to make sure that all the other team members are included in this so they can have the opportunity if they wish to go up for [the position].”

As these positions require lots of responsibility, leaders need specific skills in order to succeed. Current leaders keep an eye out for students with these skills or may train students in new skills to help them succeed. Skills such as communication, time management, organization and more are necessary for leadership. Some positions also have specific requirements; Public Affairs Officer Joselyn Fernando (12) needs to have an open schedule in order to take pictures of all JROTC events.

“[In order to succeed as Woodwind Captain, you need to be] able to be a leader and to be sufficient and just to know your stuff — like, if you’re able to teach other people,” Woodwind Captain Hayley Matthews (12) said. “Just being able to be a teacher, a leader and sufficient in music, I mean, that’s … all you need.”

Underclassmen may undergo training in order to prepare them for these positions. JROTC selects assistants who train under leaders throughout the year, learning the necessary skills. Students may also undergo a training phase at the end of the year or the beginning of the next year. The band holds band camp over the summer, during which leaders learn their new positions. If the current leader is not a senior, those taking on the role can ask them for advice throughout the next year.

“I have assistants — these two have really done a lot for me — Elizabeth Aguilar (11) and Sadie Davis (11),” Fernando said. “I’ve been showing them the things that they have to do next year. For example, my staff report, which is a storyboard. I’ve also been showing them how to do this little monthly newspaper. I do say [the newspaper] is a little more difficult [than the staff report] because they must gather information about the events that we have in JROTC for that month. I’ve also allowed them to take photographs of events that are available.”

Many seniors hope that they are able to leave a lasting impact on these programs and that these programs will be able to succeed without them. Many programs have a motivated, capable group of underclassmen ready to take charge of these programs after seniors graduate. These programs have left a lasting impact on graduating students, and many hope to leave that same impact on the program and other students.

“Hopefully — fingers crossed, I don’t wanna jinx anything — but hopefully, we win our competitions next year,” Jan Williams (12), Command Sergeant Major of the JROTC program and Executive Officer of the Unarmed Drill Team, said. “And I see the battalion also going into good hands only because the people who are stepping up into positions … who are juniors now, but are gonna be seniors next year, I feel like they are really capable of making sure this battalion is the best that they can be. They know what they’re doing; they’ve been in the battalion for long enough to effectively do their jobs properly. They know how to handle situations, they know how to communicate with Sergeant Major. I just feel like this upcoming year is probably gonna be one of the best years that the battalion has seen in a while. I loved being in ROTC for the last three years, it’s been a great experience, [I] met a lot of new people met my found family in our ROTC. Met my best friends in ROTC. It’s been great, and I’m happy and sad to say goodbye.”