From basic acts of dedication like raising the flags in front of the school each morning to larger volunteer projects, everything the Akins Air Force JROTC program does is focused on developing character traits dedicated to serving the nation and community.

The official AFJROTC objectives are to educate and train high school cadets in citizenship and life skills, promote community service, instill a sense of responsibility, and develop character, leadership, and self-discipline through education and instruction in air and space fundamentals and the Air Force’s core values of “Integrity First, Service Before Self and Excellence In All We Do.”

Like almost all student-based clubs and programs, the Akins JROTC program struggled to keep going during the years of remote learning that were caused by the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in 2020. Since then a new set of leaders have stepped up to rebuild the JROTC program to regain the strength and impact the JROTC program makes in the Akins community.

Col. Kerry Lewis took over as the top faculty leader of the program during the 2021-2022 school year when most students were still only attending classes remotely via Zoom. It was a difficult time to run a program that requires in-person activities and focuses on developing character traits.

“When I got here it was our first year coming out of COVID, first time back in-person so we were trying to build the program, build the excitement, get the uniforms out, and start building a name for ourselves,” Lewis said.

Rebuilding and recruiting has been Lewis’ focus since his first days at Akins and that continues now. Lewis said he has reached out to Akins’ feeder middle schools to grab the attention of new students coming into Akins.

“It’s a big school. I mean, we can get attention, right? And so we’ve been able to do that,” Lewis said.

Over the 30 years since he joined the Air Force in 1992, Col. Lewis worked on a wide variety of things, including military contracts and missiles. He would soon switch to occupational health. Col. Lewis worked to make the working environment safer by checking drinking water, chemical safety, biological and nuclear safety, overall just any hazardous material in general.

Lewis was familiar with the ROTC programs, which stands Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, from being a part of one in college. He said he was fascinated with the program and its potential even when on active duty, which led him to instruct at some college ROTC programs.

“We have a lot of cadets and we were just talking to some today that are currently in ROTC in college,” Lewis said. “We talked to some who are already on active duty in the military, and they appreciate what they learned here and they’re actually getting awards and being recognized at basic training for their success.”

The JROTC program has traditionally been taught and guided by two teachers — a colonel and a Chief Master Sergeant — but during the fall of the 2022-2023 school year, Lewis had to lead the program on his own. That changed in January of 2023 when Master Chief Sergeant Andre Davis was hired and began to share the responsibilities of leading the Akins JROTC unit.

Davis didn’t start his military service in the Air Force. Instead, he started as a combat engineer and drill instructor in the army but switched over to the Air Force in 1996 as an electrician. After his time as an electrician, he trained managers and sent people to an Air Force officer training school (OTS) and medical schools and helped many more people get to flight schools. After 12 years of doing this, he went to work at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., overseeing training.

“Working with the colonel and then the cadets was the thing that made me choose the school easily, and I have just been here ever since then,” Davis said. “It’s nice. Our job is to take what we learned in the military to give you tools to be successful.”

Senior Hope Rodriguez is the unit’s cadet lieutenant commander, has been involved with the Akins JROTC program since her freshman year. Last year she was promoted to deputy commander and has been a leader for the Akins JROTC unit ever since. Although new cadets now see a strong leader, it wasn’t always like this, she said.

Rodriguez’s freshman year was different. COVID affected all forms of school and JROTC was no different. She didn’t know much about the program and its drill teams as a freshman. She mostly knew that they issued a uniform and it had to be worn. Even with this rough start, she became the head of the program, leading cadets and inspiring them to strive for greatness.

“I think one of our biggest strengths is just our relationship with each other, “ Rodriguez said.

“I think something in me just kind of snapped and I was just like, ‘I really care about these students.’ I really take care of my staff and the rest of my cadets” she said.