Middle Township High School to Host Parent/Student Meetings on Naval Cadets Program

COURT HOUSE – Middle Township High School (MTHS) will hold two information meetings for students and parents interested in the Navy National Defense Cadets Corps (NNDCC), which will be begin at the school in September. Cmdr. Jimmie Miller, Area 4 NJROTC manager, will address students and parents May 29, to explain the program.
MTHS is one of 300 schools from across the country to have such a program. The NNDCC program was established in 2011 and lets schools not eligible for a Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (NJROTC) program provide a similar opportunity for students to gain the values of citizenship, service to the United States, personal responsibility, and sense of accomplishment.
Students will be addressed at 10 a.m. in the Performing Arts Center while parents will be addressed at 5:30 p.m. in the school  cafeteria.
The Performing Arts Center is at  212 Bayberry Drive. The high school cafeteria is at 300 East Atlantic Ave.        
To be considered for an NNDCC unit, a school must be accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency, or be accredited by a state, state educational agency, or state university.
The school also must have at least 50 physically fit high school students over age 14 who are interested in participating.
The Naval Service Training Command provides the curriculum, which is the same one used for the NJROTC. In addition to citizenship, leadership, naval operations/organization and naval history, cadets also receive an introduction to navigation, nautical astronomy, oceanography and electronics including shipboard radar, sonar, and guidance systems.
The two-year minimum certification requires 7,500 hours of participation. Students who join as freshman can complete an additional two years.
Although seniors will be able to join, they will not be able to complete the minimum two-year requirement.
The Navy encourages any seniors interested in pursuing the military after graduation to join, so they can gain military experience.