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National High School Drill Team Championships

The National High School Drill Team Championships is the largest and most prestigious single-weekend assembly of drill and ceremony talent in the world. More than 3,000 cadets in JROTC (Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps) programs across the country participate in this annual competition.

Many of the participating cadets have trained throughout their entire high school career to compete at this championship. Many credit the teamwork and hands-on training they received through JROTC for helping them reach this level of competition.

The best teams in the nation compete in the highly watched Demilitarized Arms Platoon Exhibition. Teams perform their precise heavy weight weapons routines while vying for the national championship title. 

Another incredible feature of the event is the Knock Out Drills featuring more than 1,000 students on the arena floor competing with utmost precision in a “Command and Execution” type of drill that narrows the group down to 10 students and ends with one champion.

For many cadets, this is their last drill competition before graduation. JROTC cadets dedicate several hours of their day training, and on top of that, these talented students boast higher GPAs and graduation rates than their peers in their schools who are not affiliated with the JROTC program.