Oct 25, 2025 By Garrett Neese 4 min read

Starting in January, students from all five Greene County districts will be participating in an Army Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program believed to be the first of its kind.

Students will travel to the Greene County Career & Technology Center in Waynesburg for the program.

The curriculum covers areas such as leadership, physical education, citizenship and ethics. Co-curricular activities include STEM and cyberscience programs, as well as academic events and outdoor team-building competitions like the Raider Challenge.

Previously, the Greene County superintendents had been told the program could only be run through a high school, said J-M Superintendent Brandon Robinson.

After filling out an application, they were able to secure a visit from the representative who oversees the JROTC program on the East Coast.

“He flew in over the summer a couple of years ago, and basically said that this would be the first type of program where it was run through a CTC, and it could possibly be a model for other rural schools,” Robinson said.

The Jefferson-Morgan School District has already been involved in JROTC since the 2019-20 school year. Though too small on its own to have a JROTC program, it formed a partnership with the Albert Gallatin Area School District in Fayette County.

Robinson said many students in the district have gone on to pursue careers in the military. Based on the number of years they’re enrolled in JROTC, it can enable them to enlist at higher levels, which can translate to a higher pay rate and more leadership opportunities, Robinson said.

Beyond helping their career, it also helps them grow as people, he said.

“I’ve seen such a change in kids when it comes to their leadership, the way they present themselves, their confidence,” he said.

Plans call for the program to begin with the spring semester in January. Right now, the only hiccup is the government shutdown, Robinson said: the application to certify the program’s instructor can’t be processed until it reopens.

For years before J-M’s program began, the topic had come up at the monthly Greene County superintendents’ meetings.

Central Greene School District had applied for its own program, but was deemed too small, said Superintendent Matthew Blair. He’s excited about being able to offer more opportunities to students.

“Every year at graduation, we usually honor at least a half a dozen kids who are going into the military,” he said. “So this gives them another vector in which they can check that out and see, ‘Hey, this might be something I’m interested in,’ or where it’s just a good way to get discipline and class credit.”

The districts received a $50,000 Benedum Foundation grant. Of that, $40,000 will go to the salary for the instructor and $10,000 will go toward startup costs such as uniforms and equipment.

Superintendents interviewed several prospective instructor candidates with a panel including Jeremy Rohanna and Chris Clark, who are both heavily involved in Greene County veterans’ activities, Robinson said.

At last month’s CTC meeting, Patrick Patterson was hired as instructor. He now serves as student detachment commander at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

“He comes from a very decorated background,” Robinson said.

The grant only covers the first year, though Robinson has a meeting scheduled with the foundation for next year looking at extending it. A long-term goal is to obtain funding from the Army.

Blair said Central Greene is also contributing about $13,000 to the program, with other districts also contributing. Robinson said the district contributions were on par with what they would spend on other CTC programs.

“Because we were willing, it shows (the Army) that we’re serious about it, because we’re putting our money up front,” Blair said. “So I think they saw some value in it.”

In a recent survey of students, more than 100 students in three districts had indicated they would be interested in the program, Blair said.

J-M currently caps its program at nine students, who take a van 35 minutes every day to Albert Gallatin. About 15 have expressed interest — a number that could grow with a closer option, Robinson said.

“It’s been a great opportunity for our kids, and Albert Gallatin has treated our kids great,” he said. “It just was a great opportunity to possibly start our program for all the Greene County schools.”