Los Alamos High School NJROTC Basic Leadership Training graduates are, front row from left, Sofia West and Alana Hinojosa. Back row: Arthur Yarotski, Caleb Moss and Samson O’Sullivan. Photo Courtesy LAHD NJROTC
LAHS NJROTC Leadership Academy graduates are, from left, Emma Drake and Andrew Johnson. Photo Courtesy LAHS NJROTC
BY C/ENS MIRANDA LOPEZ
NJROTC Public Affairs Officer
Los Alamos High School
Seven Los Alamos High School NJROTC students attended leadership training over the summer. Cadets Caleb Moss, Alana Hinojosa, Samson O’Sullivan, Sofia West and Arthur Yarotski took part in Basic Leadership Training from June 20-23. Cadets Emma Drake and Andrew Johnson attended Leadership Academy from July 11-15. Both camps were held at McGregor Missile Range, outside Fort Bliss, Texas.
Basic Leadership Training is a four-day program for incoming sophomores that teaches cadets that they must first learn how to follow before they can become resilient and strong leaders. They are trained in self-discipline, team-building, organizational skills, and basic military drill. Activities also included daily athletics and physical training, along with first aid and leadership training, running through an obstacle course, uniform and room inspections and a close-order drill competition.
“The part that I enjoyed the most was getting to know people who came from different schools with different backgrounds,” said Cadet Arthur Yarotski. “It was interesting hearing how they run the units at their schools compared to ours. I love physical training so of course I enjoyed the PT portion.”
Cadets Caleb Moss and Alana Hinajosa both agreed that going to Fort Bliss was a highlight of their experiences.
“My favorite part of the camp was when we went to Fort Bliss and were able to go through simulated Humvee operations,” said Cadet Moss.
The Leadership Academy is designed to prepare juniors and seniors for leadership positions in their school’s NJROTC. The goal of the program is to teach cadets valuable life and leadership lessons through real-life scenarios so that they can lead other NJROTC cadets the following school year. The intent is for them to be someone who can come in and supervise, organize and train. Topics included Leadership Characteristics for the Cadet Officer, Physical Fitness and the Leader, Commanding Troops, Inspecting Troops, and Social Etiquette and Manners. These activities helped to teach cadets how to motivate themselves to achieve their leadership and intellectual goals while providing an environment for them to practice those skills. These activities are similar to those utilized at Basic Leadership Training.
Cadet Emma Drake, LAHS NJROTC Commanding Officer, said that she is planning on using the lessons learned from this program to “leave a lasting legacy, not just in the unit, but also within the high school by working to interject our JROTC program into the very foundation of Los Alamos High School activities”. The lessons showcased different perspectives that many other JROTC instructors had on leadership by offering discipline ideals, different leadership styles, and more.
Both programs had a great impact on the cadets who attended and they all learned valuable lessons in both life and leadership. Even though the camps could be tough at times, all stated that the experience was noteworthy. The cadets are prepared and ready to apply what they learned to the NJROTC program and to Los Alamos as well.