Posted on Thursday, Apr. 14, 2005

San Jose Mercury

We want you -- within reason

MILITARY OUTREACH IS NECESSARY,
BUT SCHOOLS MUST TAKE CARE TO SET LIMITS

Mercury News Editorial

Armed with a $2 billion recruitment budget and alluring toys like Humvees and ``adventure vans,'' the U.S. military is a constant visitor on many Silicon Valley high school campuses. You can find recruiters in class, at lunch, after school and, in some areas, even chaperoning dances.

With enlistments flagging, the military will keep pushing its presence -- until districts set reasonable limits.

Federal law requires that the military be given the same access to campuses as employers and college recruiters. That makes sense, because our national policy is to maintain all-volunteer armed forces. But it requires parity, not an open door.

At schools with large minority populations and low college-attendance rates, the military may be the only postgraduation option that students learn about. Recruiters target these schools at the same time as the University of California and California State University systems have cut back their outreach programs. Some districts have eliminated career counselors. The military has happily filled the void.

Last month, San Jose Unified School District administrators and principals spelled out when recruiters can visit high schools. Each branch of the military will be restricted to a table at school one day each month, at which handouts and videos will be permitted. They also can attend career days, to which they can bring their array of cool vehicles.

The district responded appropriately to parents' complaints. Others should follow the lead and create uniform guidelines. They should make explicit that recruiters may not use class time to make their sales pitches or administer the military aptitude test.

Districts also need to make sure parents know their rights. Under the No Child Left Behind Act, schools must provide military recruiters with the names, addresses and phone numbers of juniors and seniors unless parents deny permission. But most parents don't know they can opt out. The denial form rarely makes its way home or is buried in a student handbook. Then moms and dads are surprised when recruiters start calling.

Rep. Mike Honda, D-Campbell, is sponsoring a bill that would prevent military recruiters from contacting students unless parents and minors explicitly give their consent. That would be too restrictive. But districts should be posting the opt-out information on the Web and sending a letter home.

Given the national interest in a volunteer military, the armed forces should be able to make the case to high school students. Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps leadership programs, an indirect form of recruitment on high school campuses, often motivate students to stay in school and get their diplomas.

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