La Puerta de Oro-San Francisco Chapter, NSDAR Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC)

A LONGSTANDING SAN FRANCISCO ALLIANCE

The La Puerta de Oro–San Francisco, NSDAR chapter has a longstanding tradition of presenting our city’s ROTC youth with medals at the end of each academic year, recognizing their outstanding achievements. The DAR National Defense Committee has awarded ROTC medals since 1967, as the ROTC program plays a vital role in supplying trained officers to our armed forces. The presentation of these awards fulfills two of the important objectives of DAR: the support of education and the promotion of patriotism.

Our chapter awards medals to outstanding cadets in three different programs: the University of San Francisco ROTC, the San Francisco Unified School District Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC), and the Sea Cadets, Arkansas Division, based on Yerba Buena Island. 

Criteria for cadet selection include: demonstrated loyalty and patriotism and academic achievement, both in the top 25 percent scholastically and in ROTC classes. Recipients must possess qualities of dependability, good character, adherence to military discipline, and leadership.  Students receiving medals are selected by the commanders of their units.

The JROTC teaches high school students leadership skills, citizenship, respect for themselves and one another.  Community service projects and student-taught classes train the cadets to motivate and direct others, and to give back to their communities. The curriculum uses contemporary models and methods to enhance learning that have proven to help students perform better in both their JROTC classes and in their general schoolwork. While JROTC is not a program designed to recruit students to the armed forces, its focus is to develop strong, civic-minded individuals ready to make a significant contribution to their country.

ROTC is a college/university-level program that trains cadets and commissions them as officers in the armed forces upon graduation.  When President Wilson signed the National Defense Act of 1916, the ROTC was born. The program consists of a diverse group of men and women—the first class of female cadets was commissioned in 1976. ROTC is the largest commissioning source in the U.S. military. Many scholarships are awarded to qualified students, some paying for the student’s entire college education. The curriculum is focused on giving cadets the tools and confidence to lead, to make decisions in complicated circumstances, and to excel in self-discipline.

The U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps, which partners with the U.S. Navy and the Coast Guard, is a youth development program that instills into its cadets the values of teamwork, discipline, camaraderie and service. Cadets, aged 13 through 17, begin with a mandatory two-week training session focusing on the Navy’s core values of honor, courage and commitment. One of the program’s goals is to develop interest and ability in seamanship and seagoing skills. Cadets can participate in advanced training aboard Navy and Coast Guard vessels, or even take classes wherein they learn to build underwater robots.

Each year in the spring, a representative from our chapter attends the three awards ceremonies in San Francisco to present the highly coveted medals. When these decorated students apply for college or military stations, the fact that they can add the DAR Outstanding Cadet Medal to their résumé is of great value and pride.

ROTC/JROTC AWARDS

Gold and bronze ROTC medals are presented to outstanding high school and college cadets.

• The NSDAR Gold ROTC Medal is awarded to a college or university graduate being commissioned in the U.S. Armed Forces.

• The NSDAR Bronze ROTC Medal is awarded to a student in a secondary school JROTC program (junior or senior), a junior college graduating senior, or a graduating senior of a U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Unit.