Military Acknowledges More Sexual Abuse in J.R.O.T.C. Programs

Military leaders and members of Congress said that when run successfully, the program was a vital way to teach teenagers life skills, discipline and leadership, and to expose them to military careers at a time when recruiting has become an increasing challenge. But the lawmakers said military officials had not taken reports of abuse seriously enough and had largely placed the responsibility of uncovering bad behavior on school districts.

The Times investigation detailed how the military certifies instructors — all retired veterans, many after lengthy careers in the armed services — but then takes a hands-off approach, turning supervision over to the schools. Instructors often grow close to their students, becoming mentors and leading extracurricular activities off campus or outside normal school hours. Those bonds can help guide students through difficult periods of high school or give them a positive role model, but they can also lead to problems when instructors use those positions to abuse their students.

The subcommittee in its own investigation found that all of the military branches had failed to conduct annual inspections of every program, as is required by the Defense Department. Military officials suggested on Wednesday that more funding would allow them to hire more staff members to inspect the programs more frequently.

The Army runs the largest of the J.R.O.T.C. programs, and Yvette K. Bourcicot, the Army’s acting assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs, said taking J.R.O.T.C. at a high school in a suburb of Washington, D.C., had set her on a path toward a top Army leadership role. She said that she found the recent reports of abuse very worrisome.

“J.R.O.T.C. instructor mistreatment of cadets is particularly egregious because of the faith and confidence that the Army, parents, students and the nation place in those teachers,” Ms. Bourcicot said. She noted that the Army had enhanced its background checks, in 2014, for employees who regularly deal with children, including J.R.O.T.C. instructors. She said that the Army was preparing to roll out annual attestation forms to instructors in which they would promise to “uphold Army values.”

Alex Wagner, the Air Force’s assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs, said that 92 percent of the Air Force’s instructors are men, despite the fact that about 40 percent of cadets are women, and that the branch was prioritizing the hiring of more female instructors. He said the Air Force was also reviewing its vetting processes and would start including information about how to contact J.R.O.T.C. headquarters on the consent forms that parents and students sign at the beginning of the school year.