Book Description

The 21st Century will force the Army to make perhaps the most dramatic changes to its structure, organization, and doctrine in its history. The junior leaders of this new organization, the Objective Force, will require skills, talents, and training to understand the world around them and to better see the entire battlespace from all dimensions. The changing operating environment being shaped by both traditional threats and rising non-traditional threats will present significant challenges for the leaders of this new force. If the Army is going to successfully transition to the Objective Force, Army ROTC must lead the way in recruiting, retaining, and training the right type of Gen-Xers with the necessary characteristics to become the lieutenants of the Objective Force. Army ROTC has evolved into the largest producer of officers for the Army. ROTC officers have proven themselves in war and peace. Despite the outstanding record of producing quality officers, Cadet Command has not had the same level of success in producing lieutenants in the quantity that the Army requires. It has failed to meet its commissioning mission each of the past ten years. It is imperative to the success of the Army's transition to the Objective Force that this trend be reversed. Cadet Command must ensure that the organization, staffing, and training of Army ROTC will attract the right type of students to ensure a highly trained and properly manned officer corps. This is the major challenge facing Cadet Command and Army ROTC. It must provide the majority of lieutenants for the Objective Force. The purpose of this research paper is to look at challenges facing Cadet Command in successfully recruiting and training the new lieutenants with the necessary skills and attributes to assume leadership roles in the Objective Force and beyond. The paper looks at the history of Army ROTC, and the impact of changes in the market, the world, and the Army on the organization and operations of ROTC. It identifies the major challenges in personnel, recruiting, and training Cadet Command must overcome and recommendations for ensuring that Cadet Command provides the right quality and quantity of lieutenants for the Objective Force.