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In Public Service: Rep. Maloney is calling for an investigation of sexual harassment of Junior ROTC cadets

August 15, 2022 Special from In Public Service
U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney of New York is chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. Photo: Greg Nash/Pool, AP
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Today, Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and Rep. Stephen F. Lynch, Chairman of the Subcommittee on National Security, sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III and the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force requesting information about how the Department of Defense (DOD) and the military services conduct oversight of their respective Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) programs to ensure that program leaders, instructors, and administrators cannot abuse, harass, or otherwise victimize the cadets under their supervision.  The letter follows an alarming report from TheNew York Times detailing high rates of sexual misconduct and abuse within JROTC programs. “As the United States Armed Forces struggle to attract qualified recruits to enlist and serve our nation in uniform, the military services must redouble their efforts to promote the safety, well-being, and academic and personal growth of our country’s next generation of leaders, who will ultimately decide for themselves whether to pursue a career of military service,” the Chairs wrote. The New York Times investigation found that during the last five years, prosecutors have brought criminal charges against at least 33 JROTC instructors related to sexual misconduct or abuse involving students, contributing to a rate that the Times found was far higher than the rate of civilian high school teachers. According to the Times and other news reports, the alleged abuses occurred in JROTC programs across the military services.

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