Students from Butler High School are among graduates nationwide who have entered active military service.

Kayla Marra, of Butler, joined the Navy earlier this year. Eighteen other county residents did too, signing up for both active duty and the reserves.

Marra reports for basic training Jan. 12 in Chicago, Ill., part of a delayed entry program because of the sheer number of recruits.

“They're backed-up,” she said.

Patrick Sherman, also of Butler, chose Air Force service. He leaves Aug. 9 for basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas.

“It's going to be hot,” he said.

In addition, 23 people here joined the Marine Corps and the Marine Corps Reserves, and 51 joined the Army, 23 in active duty service.

“The reason people enlist really varies,” said Army Sgt. First Class Christopher Chavira of Butler. “It might be because the job market is hard, or the economy is bad, or a desire to avoid student loans. Patriotism is a big factor.”

Marra was sworn in May 27 at the federal building in Pittsburgh, along with two other active-duty recruits and three National Guard enlistees.

Although Marra has a natural affinity for the service, she also was influenced by the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC), an elective class she took during her four years in high school.

“The Army taught me to go outside my comfort zone,” Marra said. “It taught us to have goals and to keep going to succeed, to keep working.

“I'm really looking forward to getting out and seeing the world, giving back to my country and my community.”

Marra will work as an apprentice in a Naval communications program.

Sherman also participated in JROTC throughout high school, but his decision to enlist was influenced by his family history, a prominent factor in who joins the service, Chavira said.

“My grandpa was in the Air Force,” he said. “He took me flying when I was younger.”

Sherman wants to become a pilot someday, but first he will attend basic training, then go to technical school for tactical aircraft maintenance, fixing jet fighters.

“I like aircraft and I like fixing things,” Sherman said.

Before he gets his wings, Sherman will need to get his bachelor's and go to flight school, all of which he can do while he's enlisted.

Both Marra and Sherman praise Butler's JROTC program for its family atmosphere and the confidence, communication and leadership skills they gained there.

At the same time, it isn't just JROTC graduates who are enlisting.

“I don't see JROTC as a big factor,” Chavira said. “It's based on what your goals are.”

According to the Department of Defense, military pay is among the highest in the country for high school graduates. In addition, like many corporations, military recruiters may use a mix of bonuses and incentives to attract enlistments.

“Incentives are used to expand the market, to channel enlistments into critical skills, to encourage specific ‘terms of enlistment' ranging from two to six years, to motivate sooner enlistment when needed to fill training vacancies and to reward higher education,” the DOD says in its report, “Recruiting and the All-Volunteer Force.”

And the strategy works.

Nationwide, DOD recruitment figures show that almost all branches of the military, whether active duty or reserves, have met or exceeded their recruitment goals through April in fiscal year 2011, which runs from Oct. 1, 2010, to Sept. 30, 2011. Only the Air Force Reserve has faltered, and its recruitment level is at 99 percent, down from 105 percent in fiscal 2010.

According to the DOD's active-duty roster, nationwide 39,096 people joined the Army; 18,482 people joined the Navy; 12,932 people joined the Marines; and 16,153 people joined the Air Force this fiscal year.

“We're just going out and telling students our Army story,” Chavira said.

The Army is the largest branch of the military and the Marines is the smallest.