Published: Monday, January 16, 2012
Super Kid: Jonathan James, 18, senior, Marysville Getchell High School
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Dan Bates / The Herald
Jonathan James, 18, a senior at Marysville Getchell High School, would like to own a custom car and motorcycle body shop someday.
Q: I heard you're the only one at your school who is involved in an Army program.
A: Yes, it was called the Split Entry Program, and it's for juniors in high school, and they can go to boot camp between their junior and senior year in the summer.
Q: Where was boot camp?
A: Over in South Carolina at Fort Jackson. It was crazy hot.
Q: What was boot camp like?
A: It was definitely an experience. It felt like a lifetime and it was 10 weeks. It wasn't as hard as I imagined now that I'm out of it, but it was definitely trying. It was pretty physical, and we worked on just getting our heads wrapped around appropriate terminology and how to address people and military life. We started shooting the second week. I qualified the best out of my platoon, shooting a 38 out of 40, so I was qualified as an expert marksman.
Q: Have you had any shooting training before?
A: I've gone with my dad once or twice to the shooting range when I was younger.
Q: Have you started a job with the Army?
A: My job in the Army is a wheeled vehicle mechanic that's also what I'm doing on the civilian side. I haven't gone to school for my job, but I have been assigned to a unit, which I have been drilling for the Army Reserves on drill days. One weekend a month I go down to Bothell, and since I'm a mechanic, we sit in a motor pool, which is a big garage with military vehicles, and we'll do maintenance on them or just check them out.
Q: Did you get to pick your job?
A: Yes. I was given limited jobs because of being in high school. I couldn't pick any combat-oriented jobs because combat jobs are straight from boot camp to combat training. I picked my job as a mechanic because I got an $8,000 signing bonus and my contract is six years long with two inactive years.
Q: How did you decide this program was something you wanted to do?
A: My parents both met in the Army so my interest was sparked there from the get-go. I only ever wanted to be in the Army. Then I've been visiting with recruiters for as long as I can remember and trying to get as much knowledge about the Army as I could, and they told me about this program where I could enlist when I was 17 years old.
Q: How is school going for you?
A: School is all right. My senior year is my best academic year so far. I've gotten A's and B's.
Q: Students at Marysville Getchell High School decide which small learning community they want to be part of. Why did you decide to enter The School of the Entrepreneur?
A: Military is not what I want to do my whole life. I wanted to have the skills to know how to start a business. A lot of my friends are here too, so I picked this school. What I want to do when I get out of the military is start a custom car and motorcycle body shop.
Q: What are your plans after graduation?
A: I haven't gotten my ship dates yet for school, what is called AIT, or Advanced Individual Training, because the Army needs to make sure the student is going to graduate. If there's time in between, maybe I'll move in with some friends, head out to AIT, come back and get a full-time job or maybe go to school.
Q: Where would you like to go to school?
A: I wouldn't mind going to MMI, Orlando's Motorcycle Mechanics Institute.
Q: And what kind of motorcycle did you recently buy?
A: I got a Kawasaki Ninja. As soon as I got back, in August, I knew I wanted a motorcycle. My older brother, he rides. All through boot camp I was trying to watch what I spent my money on, no extra food or anything like that, so when I got back I had as much money as I could to put toward my bike.
A: Yes, it was called the Split Entry Program, and it's for juniors in high school, and they can go to boot camp between their junior and senior year in the summer.
Q: Where was boot camp?
A: Over in South Carolina at Fort Jackson. It was crazy hot.
Q: What was boot camp like?
A: It was definitely an experience. It felt like a lifetime and it was 10 weeks. It wasn't as hard as I imagined now that I'm out of it, but it was definitely trying. It was pretty physical, and we worked on just getting our heads wrapped around appropriate terminology and how to address people and military life. We started shooting the second week. I qualified the best out of my platoon, shooting a 38 out of 40, so I was qualified as an expert marksman.
Q: Have you had any shooting training before?
A: I've gone with my dad once or twice to the shooting range when I was younger.
Q: Have you started a job with the Army?
A: My job in the Army is a wheeled vehicle mechanic that's also what I'm doing on the civilian side. I haven't gone to school for my job, but I have been assigned to a unit, which I have been drilling for the Army Reserves on drill days. One weekend a month I go down to Bothell, and since I'm a mechanic, we sit in a motor pool, which is a big garage with military vehicles, and we'll do maintenance on them or just check them out.
Q: Did you get to pick your job?
A: Yes. I was given limited jobs because of being in high school. I couldn't pick any combat-oriented jobs because combat jobs are straight from boot camp to combat training. I picked my job as a mechanic because I got an $8,000 signing bonus and my contract is six years long with two inactive years.
Q: How did you decide this program was something you wanted to do?
A: My parents both met in the Army so my interest was sparked there from the get-go. I only ever wanted to be in the Army. Then I've been visiting with recruiters for as long as I can remember and trying to get as much knowledge about the Army as I could, and they told me about this program where I could enlist when I was 17 years old.
Q: How is school going for you?
A: School is all right. My senior year is my best academic year so far. I've gotten A's and B's.
Q: Students at Marysville Getchell High School decide which small learning community they want to be part of. Why did you decide to enter The School of the Entrepreneur?
A: Military is not what I want to do my whole life. I wanted to have the skills to know how to start a business. A lot of my friends are here too, so I picked this school. What I want to do when I get out of the military is start a custom car and motorcycle body shop.
Q: What are your plans after graduation?
A: I haven't gotten my ship dates yet for school, what is called AIT, or Advanced Individual Training, because the Army needs to make sure the student is going to graduate. If there's time in between, maybe I'll move in with some friends, head out to AIT, come back and get a full-time job or maybe go to school.
Q: Where would you like to go to school?
A: I wouldn't mind going to MMI, Orlando's Motorcycle Mechanics Institute.
Q: And what kind of motorcycle did you recently buy?
A: I got a Kawasaki Ninja. As soon as I got back, in August, I knew I wanted a motorcycle. My older brother, he rides. All through boot camp I was trying to watch what I spent my money on, no extra food or anything like that, so when I got back I had as much money as I could to put toward my bike.
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