The district announced today it received approval for the JROTC program, which will be an elective for grades 9-12 and is a natural fit for a district where 30 percent of the students are connected to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
"We were thrilled that the answer was 'yes'," Assistant Superintendent Jason Enix told WHIO's Gabrielle Enright. "We received a phone call from headquarters about two weeks ago letting us know we are ready for the 2018/2019 school year."
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Getting approval for the "US Code mandated citizenship training program" took two years to complete, according to the district.
The program trains cadets in citizenship, promoting community service, instilling personal responsibility, character and self-discipline, according to the district.
As many as 150 students are expected to sign up, and ninth-grader Claire Yamamoto may be one of them.
Yamamoto is among the 30 percent of Beavercreek schools' 7,800 students who are connected to the base.
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Yamamoto said she's lived on the base for seven years after her family moved up from San Antonio.
Claire said her father recently retired from the Air Force. She's not sure yet whether she'll follow in his steps, but she likes having this new program at the high school.
"I think it's a good thing to show kids in the Air Force and kids outside of the Air Force what they do and how they do it and that it's a good atmosphere," she said.
Most of the program's activities will take place in Ferguson Hall, but some classroom activities will happen at the high school, Enix said.