CORVALLIS (AP) — Five years into the war in Iraq, increasing numbers of students are volunteering for Army and Air Force ROTC at Oregon State, although the numbers for a Navy and Marines unit are down.

About 300 cadets paraded across the Memorial Union Quad at Oregon State at the annual Joint Service Review on Friday, and both officers and cadets took stock of the campus ROTC program.

Lt. Col. Mike Daniels said the Army ROTC unit he commands has gone from 88 cadets to 110 in the past two years.

“It seems a bit counterintuitive,” Daniels said. But he said he expects numbers to rise again next year.

The Air Force ROTC unit numbers 75 students this year, up 12 percent, said 2nd Lt. Brenden McClean, the unit admissions officer.

 He credited the increase to better recruiting and marketing.

The Naval ROTC unit, which includes Navy and Marines cadets, has dropped from 120 students to 97 in the last three years, said Navy Senior Chief Tim Hagey.

“We look at it and wonder why we aren’t getting more,” he said. But the figures often fluctuate, he said.

Army Cadet Scott Peterson, a Bend senior, expects to graduate in June and knows Uncle Sam could send him to a war zone.

“It’s not something I dread,” he said. “I kind of look forward to it, just because of the experience.”

Peterson gets a scholarship for tuition and fees and books, and a $500 per month stipend. But he said he committed to the service because he liked the opportunities it provided.

“You definitely get a lot of skills you wouldn’t get if you weren’t in a program like this,” said Caleb Barker, a junior from McMinnville, and an Air Force cadet who hopes to become a pilot.

He said he’s become more of a leader, can work with others better, and organizes his time effectively — his grades actually increased despite fewer hours for leisure.

Among the 200 watching the Joint Service Review was Anna Verdieck of Troutdale, who came to support her daughter Kandace Smith, a freshman cadet with the Air Force ROTC.

After some misgivings, Verdieck said, she’s is proud her daughter wants to join the military.

“At first I was a little hesitant with the war going on and all that stuff,” she said. “But I know there are people just born to help their country and serve.”

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Information from: Gazette-Times, http://www.gtconnect.com