Uniform Wear and Grooming Standards

As you see from the images below, we wear uniforms for various activities and functions. We have an assortment of uniforms to wear but one thing remains a constant in all of them: the professional image of an AFJROTC cadet and ambassador of Avon Park High School. All grooming standards and uniform wear guidance are located in the annually updated Cadet Handbook. We have added a link to the current copy of the Cadet Handbook on this page.

We do not only wear the blue Air Force uniform but also the camouflage and community service uniform. All uniforms are issued at no charge. The community service uniform is unique to APHS and consists of our red t-shirt, closed-toe shoes, jeans or khaki pants with a belt.

Grooming standards are part of the program and there are a few things to be aware of:

1. Piercings: Males may not wear any earrings while in uniform. Females may wear one pair of conservative earrings while in uniform; no other piercings are authorized in uniform.

2. Fingernails: All fingernails may be no longer than 1/4 of an inch long. Females may wear conservative colors on their nails but no ornamentation. Males may not have any fingernail polish while in uniform.

3. Hair, male: Must be clean and cut in a fashion that has a taper on the sides and back while NOT touching the ear. It may be no thicker than 2 1/2 inches tall. There are limitations to locs, dreads, and other styles - all covered in the Cadet Handbook.

4. Hair, female: Recent changes allow for braids, pony tails, and bulk changes. Please check the Cadet Handbook for specifics. Pictures and explanations will be provided in the classroom.

We have started our own recruiting poster initiative. Here are the initial posters created in the 2018-2019 school year.

The intent behind these 2018-2019 posters were to challenge students within APHS to join the JROTC program. The goal of these were to have one put in the AP Pride and features on the school Facebook page to attract attention to the program.

Again, all attention was on cadets doing things and the teams and opportunities afforded by AFJROTC.

Created in 2019, this Mythbuster poster features all Avon Park High School JROTC cadets. Cadets can participate in more than on activity and we created this poster to highlight that fact.

Etiquette, "the customary rules of conduct or behavior in polite society," helps our civilized society operate smoother and creates a more pleasant place to live, go to school, and work. "Treat Others as You Wish to Be Treated," a good mantra to live by, is the desired behavior of cadets. To demonstrate proper etiquette and good manners, which provide the foundation for customs and courtesies, cadets must:

Say "Please"; “Pardon Me” and "Thank You, Sir/Ma’am"

Use the Seven Authorized Statements/Responses when addressing AFJROTC instructors, military members, school officials, teachers, cadet officers, adults and visitors at all times.

Introduction to the ASVAB Career Exploration Program

Cadets can have the opportunity to take the ASVAB for free. 

This can also help them especially if they are planning to go into the military. 

This video helps explain how to read your ASVAB scores.

If the video does not work, go to this link and select under CEP Resources the link title "Understanding Your ASVAB Result Tutorial".  It is located in the center column of options.  

ASVAB Result Tutorial

If you have not taken the ASVAB before, use this sheet with the video to see how to interpret the scores on the score sheet.

 This slide shows you that only 29% of the US populations starts out able to join the military.  it breaks down some of the more common reasons people are disqualified from joining.  Weight is the largest factor for disqualification, followed by drugs, and some for conduct.  The unhealthy decisions made in high school can affect your future if you are considering the military.

History of the Air Force
Color Guard History
Drill History

Military drill began its march to ascendancy initially through the work Baron Frederick Von Steuben around the time of the Revolutionary War. Baron von Steuben was a trained, military specialist who changed the way the Continental Army worked during the American War for Independence. Regarding drill, he began by training a core group of soldiers and they in turn, trained the rest of the army in a descending pattern. The key: simplicity. He reduced the motions in the manual of arms to ten...he implemented a standard pace and cadence and to keep step in a march without the use of a drum simply by watching the officer at the head of the column. He is basically the genesis of all marching done by the United States military.

Further early push in military drill came from none other than General John "Black Jack" Pershing around 1900. Pershing wished to increase the morale and discipline of the battalion he commanded, as well as to increase support for the Cadet Corps throughout the university's staff and community. To this end, he formed a hand-picked company of men, known as Company A, and made them his premier drill unit. Military exhibition drill excellence was begun that day in Omaha, Nebraska.

Just decades later, the four service branches capitalized on this popular movement and created service drill & ceremony units. The most famous of these remain the U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon, as well as the U.S. Army Drill Team, formed from within The Old Guard, the soldiers assigned the duty to protect the President in Washington, DC. The United States Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon is a 24-man rifle platoon of the United States Marine Corps. Often referred to as The Marching Twenty-Four, the unit performs unique silent precision exhibition drill. The purpose of the platoon is to exemplify the discipline and professionalism of the Marine Corps. The Silent Drill Platoon first performed in 1948, originally as a one-time show, and received such an overwhelming response that it soon became part of the routine parades at Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C.

Just after this time, the 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) established the U.S. Army Drill Team. The 3rd Infantry is the official Escort to the President of the United States and the nation's Premier Memorial Affairs and Ceremonial Unit. Old Guard Soldiers are in Arlington National Cemetery daily rendering final honors to our fallen, both past and present. The U.S Army Drill Team performs annually as part of Twilight Tattoo (May and June) and Spirit of America (September), and year round at various public events. The U.S. Army Drill Team was organized to concentrate on precise marching and crisp rifle drill. They have supported The Old Guard's ceremonial missions, thrilling millions of youngsters and proud Americans for more than 50 years. (http://www.thenationals.net/DHOF/history.htm)

Bataan Death March

April 9, 1942: U.S. and Philippine forces surrender the Bataan Peninsula, on the main Philippine island of Luzon, to the Japanese during World War II (1939-45). Divided into groups of about 100, the Japanese force marched the approximately 75,000 prisoners of war (65,000 American and 10,000 Filipinos) on an arduous 65-mile trek, in less than five days, from Mariveles, on the southern end of the Bataan Peninsula, to prison camps near San Fernando and Camp O'Donnell. What became known as the Bataan Death March typically took each group around five days to complete.

Estimates claim thousands died due to brutality, but no one knows an exact number. Many prisoners died of disease, starvation, intense heat, and if too weak to carry on, they were bayoneted, shot, or beheaded. The captors stripped the prisoners of shoes and hats and deprived them of sleep, food, and water. The torturous treatment went as far as shooting prisoners attempting to drink from streams. Specifically, 30 POWs attempted to fill their canteens on the side of the road and were shot by Japanese machine guns. Other men were allowed to get water, unfortunately but when they got to it, it was filled with maggots. This was pure torture because there were water spigots nearby with clean water. When the men were allowed to rest, they were forced down on burning hot pavement or clearings directly in the sun.

Throughout the whole march, the Japanese tortured the prisoners of war whenever they could.