JROTC instructors win path to representation as trustees approve bargaining‑unit change

Trustees on the Washoe County School District Board voted on April 28 to move forward with establishing a separate negotiated agreement for JROTC instructors, a change supporters said will align their employment protections with other licensed teachers. The board approved the consent agenda that included direction to staff to implement the bargaining‑unit formation.

Multiple JROTC instructors and program leaders addressed the board during the public comment period urging approval. "JROTC instructors work daily for the welfare of school children and the advancement of education," said Lieutenant Colonel Todd Hudson, senior aviation science instructor, who asked the board to "respect the shared purpose and professional responsibility" of instructors. Likewise, Lieutenant Colonel Scott Caldwell, director of JROTC for the district, told trustees the instructors are "first and foremost Washoe County School District classroom teachers" and described research and peer practices showing instructors are commonly included in negotiated agreements elsewhere.

Colonel Ken Stein, a senior army instructor who identified himself as serving Earl Wooster High School, said instructors have long shared the same students and teaching responsibilities as other licensed teachers and that inclusion would ensure fairness and representation. "The only thing we do not share with every other licensed teacher in the district is how our pay is computed," he said, adding that many instructors now seek parity for benefits, grievance representation and professional protections.

District staff and union representatives acknowledged the change follows negotiations and legal review. Trustee Westlake, who has advocated for the instructors, said the move will provide instructors "the representation and dignity that they deserve." The board recorded a unanimous consent vote for the consent package that carried the related action.

What happens next: staff will finalize the bargaining‑unit formation and return implementing language to the board per district and state requirements. The board did not vote on specific contract language at the meeting.