JCLC Eagle No Ordinary Day at the Beach

Not Just Another Day at the Beach for Fishburne Military School Cadets

Virginia Beach, VA — Eleven cadets and two instructors from Fishburne Military School are spending this week at the beach. Virginia Beach. At the Camp Pendleton State

LTC Robert Hunt (Fishburne SAI) motivates a litter carry team.

Military Reservation. Despite the fun, it’s no vacation.

The training grid is packed and Cadets are up and on their feet as early as 0500, but you won’t hear any complaints. These young JROTC cadets and their instructors are focused on learning as much as they possibly can in the time allotted. Orienteering, rappelling, basic wilderness survival, boat safety, drown-proofing, CPR, first aid and more are all on the itinerary at JCLC Eagle (Junior Cadet Leadership Challenge – Camp Eagle) this week.

Fishburne Cadet Connor Green (Virginia Beach, VA) on rappel

JCLC Eagle is a summer training camp held each year for cadets within JROTC Cadet Command’s 4th Brigade. This year nearly 250 motivated young cadets (representing 19 JROTC units throughout Virginia and 9 units from North Carolina) converged upon Camp Pendleton, VA to hone their leadership skills, build confidence and network with other like-minded young people.

Fishburne Military School’s Senior Army Instructor, LTC Robert Hunt, USA(Ret.), can’t help but smile as he surveys the group waiting to tackle the 80-foot rappel tower. “This is a tremendous opportunity and great resource for these Cadets. The opportunity these young people have to learn from and interact with some of the finest JROTC instructors in the nation is really remarkable.”

Hunt goes on to to note “And the motivation these cadets are showing helps to keep the instructors inspired to teach. It’s an outstanding thing to see.”

JROTC’s 4th Brigade is comprised of 318 schools and over 3000 cadets representing JROTC units from 5 states and the District of Columbia.

Fishburne Military School is the oldest and smallest of all military schools for boys in Virginia. Its college-prep curriculum is built on the structure of an Army JROTC program. FMS has been designated as a JROTC Honor Unit with Distinction and may nominate qualified candidates to the United States Service Academies. Fishburne hosts one of only four Summer JROTC programs in the nation that is accredited by US Army Cadet Command.