CUT JROTC Now!  Sign the Petition

December 4, 2008
NEW: $3,863,247 spent on JROTC salaries alone in LAUSD (2007)

This campaign was created to eliminate the JROTC (Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps) program in Los Angeles Unified School District.  Presently LAUSD is facing a budget crisis which continues to worsen.  Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has called a special session of the legislature to reopen the 2008-2009 budget to deal with the mounting state deficit, and has said that schools should be prepared for the possibility of another $2 billion to $4 billion in midyear cuts in addition to the $3 billion that has already been cut. California is ranked an unacceptable 46th in the nation in per pupil spending and is now likely to slip even further. LAUSD cut $427 million this year, and has plans to increase class size in grades K-3, with more grades to follow.  The district is also attempting to have teachers take furloughs, or unpaid days off, to cope with the shortfall, and cutting health benefits which the union is fighting. 

   The United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) demands that LAUSD must do everything possible to cut the fat and waste such as the $845 million spent on outside contracts. It's also time to take a hard look at the JROTC (Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps) program that has been institutionalized in LAUSD regardless of it's cost and programmatic concerns. The JROTC program should not be given special treatment. There are many reasons to be  concerned about JROTC which has been funded with LAUSD dollars under the myth that it is free.  The program has violated the California Education Code and has been promoted as "not about military recruiting" while used as a hub for military recruiters.  The millions dollars of LAUSD money that JROTC costs the district can be better spent on the general educational needs of all the students. 

What you can do:

• Please sign our cutJROTC.com petition at http://petitiononline.com/cutjrotc and join this movement. We will be planning specific actions to be posted on this web page. 
• Send a letter to LAUSD School Board:  here's a sample letter

Sponsored by:

Coalition Against Militarism in our Schools (CAMS)   www.militaryfreeschools.org 

Association of Raza Educators  www.razaeducators.org

To:  LAUSD School Board

We support the elimination of the JROTC program in Los Angeles Unified School District which costs over $2.6 million a year of district funds that could be better spent on the academic and extracurricula needs of ALL students in LAUSD.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

The Cut JROTC in LAUSD Petition to LAUSD School Board was created by social justice educators, students, parents, community members and written by Jose Lara (josexlara@yahoo.com).  This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no endorsement of this petition, express or implied, by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. For technical support please use our simple Petition Help form.

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