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Board debate over JROTC supervising PE independent study stalls after heated testimony from PE teachers
Summary
A proposed amendment allowing JROTC instructors to supervise PE independent-study credit under certain conditions failed to secure majority support after extensive testimony from credentialed PE teachers and JROTC staff about standards, credentialing and funding. Roll call recorded four ayes; motion did not pass.
The board considered an amended resolution addressing how JROTC instruction could be used to satisfy high‑school physical-education credit through supervised independent study. The proposed language attempted to reconcile competing priorities: it required credentialing steps for JROTC instructors, allowed a single certified instructor to supervise PE independent study at up to two sites, and sought to clarify funding sources (Department of Defense funds, private designated matching funds, or site budgets).
Dozens of current PE teachers testified that independent study cannot replicate sequential, standards‑based PE instruction and that the district's PE master plan requires credentialed physical-education teachers to deliver state standards. Several PE teachers and department heads reported extremely large independent-study rosters at some sites (one speaker cited roughly 100 students) and urged the board to limit class sizes and ensure onsite credentialed instruction. JROTC representatives, including program director Jerry Perattore, described steps under way toward credentialing and said the combination of JROTC and independent study has helped some students graduate.
Board discussion focused on implementation details and monitoring: commissioners asked for clarity about how many instructors are credentialed or in the credentialing pipeline, how many sites are covered, and whether sites would need to allocate school‑site funds to retain JROTC instructors if federal and philanthropic support did not cover full costs. The roll-call vote recorded four ayes and three noes; the motion did not receive sufficient support to pass as drafted.
Commissioners asked staff to return with clearer language, defined caps, and documentation of credentialing progress before bringing a revised proposal back to the board.
