Naval JROTC, Oxford High School

The Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (NJROTC) has been in existence since 1964 to address the need for youth to understand the duties and responsibilities associated with being an active citizen of the United States. The NJROTC Unit at Oxford High School is located in Oxford, MA and has been operating since August 1995. These 14-18 year-old students have worked on a variety of community service projects in the town and surrounding communities.

Since 1995, an average of approximately 55 students have been engaged in more than 25 community service projects per year, including maintaining a clean environment, supporting civic organizations and senior citizens, enhancing the school system and generating interest among other youth groups. The Oxford cadets have volunteered more than 3,800 hours each year since 1995.

The cadets participate in many annual projects including the Oxford Veteran's Recognition Dinner, the National Kidney Walk-A-Thon, Oxford/Webster Crop Walks Against Hunger, AIDS Dance and Walk-A-Thon, Easter Seals, Oxford Senior Citizens Dinner, Oxford Ecumenical Council Holiday Food Basket Distribution and Earth Day. The cadets are also involved in monthly projects such as Adopt-A-Highway and Project SHARE.

The cadets performed landscaping services at the Oxford Senior Center on over 11,500 square feet of grounds including the installation of a new lawn. They performed the first renovations on a one-room schoolhouse that was rededicated in August 1998 as a historical site; 28 cadets worked on this project for a total of 120 hours. The cadets located and obtained more than $100,000 worth of donated chairs, file cabinets, bookshelves, lockers and other equipment that they then refurbished for use in the high school. Additionally, the Color Guard has performed in more than 150 public programs since 1995.