SANTA ANA : Mater Dei to Cancel Its ROTC Program

A group of parents at Mater Dei High School are complaining about the school’s decision to cancel its long-running junior Reserve Officers Training Corps program at the end of this school year.

Principal Lyle Porter said Thursday that the school needs more classroom space for computer and liberal arts courses and can no longer justify keeping the program because of its expense and low enrollment.

“It’s primarily a space decision,” Porter said. “We’ve got 2,200 kids on a campus made for 1,700. We’re a bit landlocked here and are in the position where we need classroom space. ROTC is a very good program, and if we had the student numbers, I’m sure the program would have continued.”

This year, 59 students are enrolled in the program, Porter said. At least 140 students would have had to enroll in ROTC this year in order for the school to continue with the program. This year’s record low enrollment is consistent with a steady decrease during the last three years, he added.

The ROTC program costs $1,015 a year per student, compared to other classes at the school that cost an average of $200 a year per student. Although half of the student cost for ROTC is paid for by the Air Force, the school also pays for the salaries of a full-time and a part-time instructor.

“Those numbers are just too tough to crunch right now,” Porter said.

Parents said this week that they are upset with the way the situation has been handled.

“The parents had no warning,” said Roberta Azpeitia, who has driven from her home in West Covina on each school day since 1986 in order to drop her two sons off at Mater Dei for ROTC.

“I realize they don’t have enough students enrolled but that’s partly because they don’t advertise the program the way they do football and track,” Azpeitia said. “ROTC can give a child a future. How many kids are going to be able to make a career out of football or track?”

Beginning next year, ROTC classes will be offered at Santa Margarita High School, a Catholic high school in Rancho Santa Margarita. Porter said that by continuing the program for another year at Mater Dei, he hopes that students will be able to make a smooth transition if they decide to continue with ROTC.