The Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (JROTC) is alive and well in Crisp County. Just about every time there is a public event, you will find the local color guard there hoisting the colors of the United States. They virtually never turn anyone down when ask to help out. What is really so impressive about these young people is that they are learning some hard lessons, some lessons that many go their entire life and never develop – Leadership and Team Work. It was a pleasure watching these young cadets as they were conducting a promotion ceremony.

As the year comes to an end, new cadets must move up and take over the leadership roles. They are under the direction of Lt. Col Ken Kirk and Sergeant First Class Mark Williams, who are Crisp County High Graduates themselves, Kirk in 1973 and Williams in 1986. These young people are learning a lot more than how to walk in a straight line or stand at attention – you can teach a five year old to do that. No, they are learning so much more like duty, honor, commitment, self discipline, sacrifice, leadership, and of course, patriotism. They are being taught to think of others before themselves to be a part of a team. I for one find it refreshing that these programs exist inside our school. Teaching teamwork doesn’t just happen on the ball fields or ball courts, it happens in the classrooms and JROTC.

In the past year, the Crisp JROTC has racked up on accolades and some how we missed it, but that won’t happen again. To their honor they are the 2017 Color Guard Region Champs and the 2017 Academic Bowl State Champions. One award that might need some explaining is the Cyber Patriot Award. Crisp County won the Silver Tier State Championship in this as well. Silver tier simply means the size of school just like our classification is AAA. This award saw competition from all branches of military service in the state. The new battlefield our military must combat in the future has a great deal to do with computers, Internet, and cyber security. In this regard, it is imperative that our school system support this most notable technology and provide that our school is second to no one in this endeavor. Now add all this to the six sports titles we gathered this year.

Nate Miles was sworn in as the new Battalion Commander and will be attending the Summer Leaders experience in early June at West Point, New York, along with 1000 other students. Miles is a candidate for an appointment to the United States Military Academy. To be selected one must first have a very high GPA as he does, be physically fit as he is, and have a sense of duty and he does. “ I am extremely honored and grateful for the opportunities being afforded me,” said Miles.

Another promotion was that of Alexis Duckworth to Battalion Sergeant Major. She will be attending boot camp this summer at Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri, and then be entered into the Georgia National Guard as a PV2. These moves are also positioning Miss Duckworth into position for a possible West Point appointment.

This has been a great year in Crisp County for our sports teams and our JROTC. We should all be very grateful for the leadership provided these young people in all of the extra curricular activities provided at Crisp County High.

As the saying goes once a Cougar always a Cougar!