thedrifter
06-03-04, 08:44 AM
Eastside group warns parents of military recruiting in schools
By Leslie Fulbright
Seattle Times Eastside bureau
Todd Boyle knows service personnel regularly promote the military in his son's high-school cafeteria. He knows recruiters are allowed to call his 15-year-old boy at home, invite him for pizza and pitch military benefits like camaraderie, health care and scholarships.
His main concern, though, is that other parents don't know.
The Bellevue father and some other Eastside parents are working to get the word out about recruiting activities in schools at a time they feel the armed forces are aggressively targeting their children.
The parents are among a growing number of "counter-recruiters" nationwide, fueled in part by a law signed by President Bush in 2002 that gave the military greater access to teens through their schools.
"I really don't think parents realize the amount of recruiting going on in the school system," said Boyle, 52. "That irritates me."
Boyle's son attends Lake Washington High School in Kirkland, where military recruiters set up tables every Tuesday. A different service branch comes each week, said Peter Daniels, a district spokesman.
"Access in the schools is really good," said Staff Sgt. Claude Cruse, a Marine Corps recruiter in Bellevue. "We are able to go and look for people who are motivated to do something for their country."
The recruiters talk to students about incentives: making a difference in the world, protecting freedom, money for college, apprenticeship programs and excellent medical benefits.
But Boyle sees the duty differently and tries to tell his undecided son about the dangers of being an infantryman, the living conditions, the incidental salary and the lack of compensation for soldiers who are mentally or physically injured during war.
Boyle belongs to a group called Washington Truth in Recruiting, or WaTiR, which is organizing community workshops to connect with youngsters and parents and give not-so-glamorous information about military life. So far, they have held meetings in Kirkland, Bellevue and Duvall.
"We are organizing to try and let parents know how their children are being affected," said Marion Ward of Bellevue, a WaTiR member. "Parents think recruiters only come in on career day and that is simply not the case."
WaTiR's goal is not to protest, the group says, but to offer another point of view as the military spends millions of dollars to get kids to enlist. The group also wants to let parents know that a small provision in President Bush's No Child Left Behind law requires schools to give information on juniors and seniors to the Pentagon or lose federal funding.
In front of Eastside high schools, WaTiR members distribute opt-out forms that allow parents or students to choose not to have their name, address or phone numbers released to the military. The forms are also available in the schools.
"Before the law, the school could decide not to give us the students' names and we would have to put together lists on our own," said Verna Rossevelt, an Army spokeswoman.
"Now, they have to give it to us. They have to provide us the same access as they do to colleges and other potential employers."
The Pentagon gets the names of students 15 and older, and military recruiters can call the students, talk to them at school and make personal visits. Before the law, many schools only allowed the recruiters in on career day.
"The (No Child Left Behind) act is an asset in the recruiting effort," said Phuong Chau, a spokesman for the Marines. "But we were also successful without it. The mandate by the federal government just helps reduce the cost of recruiting by making the effort more efficient."
Vicky Monk is one parent who wishes she would have known more about school recruiters.
The Sammamish woman said her teen met with a recruiter for six months off and on without her knowledge and then decided to quit school, take the GED and join the Army. He is in Iraq.
Monk said the recruiter courted the teenager, taking him out to eat and to chat about how the Army could positively change his life. Together, Monk's son and the recruiter decided the 17-year-old would enlist when he turned 18.
"I knew nothing about this plan until he needed my permission to take the GED," Monk said. "I wanted to talk about college and other alternatives, but he had already made up his mind."
Rossevelt, the Army spokeswoman, said it is not uncommon for recruiters to deal only with the student. Parental involvement is not officially required until the young person decides to enlist.
"But it's not like we kidnap them," said Bill Pearce, an Army spokesman. The timing on when the parents get involved is up to the recruiters and it depends on the situation, he said.
"Some teens want to go right home and sit down with the parents," he said. "Others don't.
"The last thing we want are enthusiastic kids and disapproving parents."
Monk did not approve and tried to dissuade her son, but he enlisted and then went to basic training in 2001. "I tried to tell him it wasn't all fun and games like they made it sound," Monk said. "I told him 'If we go to war, you will have to go.' "
Tim Monk was sent to Iraq 14 months ago and does not know when he will come home. His mission with the Fort Lewis-based 1st Armored Division in Baghdad was set to end a few weeks ago, but the division is being forced to stay under a stop-loss order, which forbids it from leaving when the military is stretched thin.
Monk thinks that if she could have been part of the process, her cons may have outweighed the recruiter's pros.
"Parents need to know that these recruiters are making decisions with their kids and excluding them from the process," Monk said. "This is too important a decision for parents to be left out of."
WaTiR is working on the Eastside because that's where the members live. The group hopes to become a statewide educational organization and work with school counselors to develop peace-studies alternatives.
"Our kids need a more balanced military point of view," Boyle said. "Learning to drive a tank is not going to help you when you get out. Our view helps students make an informed decision."
So far, in the Bellevue School District, 171 students have opted to have their information withheld, said Elizabeth Noagi, a spokeswoman.
Leslie Fulbright: 206-515-5637 or lfulbright@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company
Recruiting and the law
Section 9528 of the No Child Left Behind Act states that each local educational agency receiving assistance under the act shall provide, on a request made by military recruiters or an institution of higher education, access to secondary-school students' names, addresses and telephone listings.
A secondary-school student or the parent of the student may request that the student's name, address and telephone listing not be released without prior written parental consent.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2001945994_recruit03e.html
The Drifter's Wife
Ellie
:no:
By Leslie Fulbright
Seattle Times Eastside bureau
Todd Boyle knows service personnel regularly promote the military in his son's high-school cafeteria. He knows recruiters are allowed to call his 15-year-old boy at home, invite him for pizza and pitch military benefits like camaraderie, health care and scholarships.
His main concern, though, is that other parents don't know.
The Bellevue father and some other Eastside parents are working to get the word out about recruiting activities in schools at a time they feel the armed forces are aggressively targeting their children.
The parents are among a growing number of "counter-recruiters" nationwide, fueled in part by a law signed by President Bush in 2002 that gave the military greater access to teens through their schools.
"I really don't think parents realize the amount of recruiting going on in the school system," said Boyle, 52. "That irritates me."
Boyle's son attends Lake Washington High School in Kirkland, where military recruiters set up tables every Tuesday. A different service branch comes each week, said Peter Daniels, a district spokesman.
"Access in the schools is really good," said Staff Sgt. Claude Cruse, a Marine Corps recruiter in Bellevue. "We are able to go and look for people who are motivated to do something for their country."
The recruiters talk to students about incentives: making a difference in the world, protecting freedom, money for college, apprenticeship programs and excellent medical benefits.
But Boyle sees the duty differently and tries to tell his undecided son about the dangers of being an infantryman, the living conditions, the incidental salary and the lack of compensation for soldiers who are mentally or physically injured during war.
Boyle belongs to a group called Washington Truth in Recruiting, or WaTiR, which is organizing community workshops to connect with youngsters and parents and give not-so-glamorous information about military life. So far, they have held meetings in Kirkland, Bellevue and Duvall.
"We are organizing to try and let parents know how their children are being affected," said Marion Ward of Bellevue, a WaTiR member. "Parents think recruiters only come in on career day and that is simply not the case."
WaTiR's goal is not to protest, the group says, but to offer another point of view as the military spends millions of dollars to get kids to enlist. The group also wants to let parents know that a small provision in President Bush's No Child Left Behind law requires schools to give information on juniors and seniors to the Pentagon or lose federal funding.
In front of Eastside high schools, WaTiR members distribute opt-out forms that allow parents or students to choose not to have their name, address or phone numbers released to the military. The forms are also available in the schools.
"Before the law, the school could decide not to give us the students' names and we would have to put together lists on our own," said Verna Rossevelt, an Army spokeswoman.
"Now, they have to give it to us. They have to provide us the same access as they do to colleges and other potential employers."
The Pentagon gets the names of students 15 and older, and military recruiters can call the students, talk to them at school and make personal visits. Before the law, many schools only allowed the recruiters in on career day.
"The (No Child Left Behind) act is an asset in the recruiting effort," said Phuong Chau, a spokesman for the Marines. "But we were also successful without it. The mandate by the federal government just helps reduce the cost of recruiting by making the effort more efficient."
Vicky Monk is one parent who wishes she would have known more about school recruiters.
The Sammamish woman said her teen met with a recruiter for six months off and on without her knowledge and then decided to quit school, take the GED and join the Army. He is in Iraq.
Monk said the recruiter courted the teenager, taking him out to eat and to chat about how the Army could positively change his life. Together, Monk's son and the recruiter decided the 17-year-old would enlist when he turned 18.
"I knew nothing about this plan until he needed my permission to take the GED," Monk said. "I wanted to talk about college and other alternatives, but he had already made up his mind."
Rossevelt, the Army spokeswoman, said it is not uncommon for recruiters to deal only with the student. Parental involvement is not officially required until the young person decides to enlist.
"But it's not like we kidnap them," said Bill Pearce, an Army spokesman. The timing on when the parents get involved is up to the recruiters and it depends on the situation, he said.
"Some teens want to go right home and sit down with the parents," he said. "Others don't.
"The last thing we want are enthusiastic kids and disapproving parents."
Monk did not approve and tried to dissuade her son, but he enlisted and then went to basic training in 2001. "I tried to tell him it wasn't all fun and games like they made it sound," Monk said. "I told him 'If we go to war, you will have to go.' "
Tim Monk was sent to Iraq 14 months ago and does not know when he will come home. His mission with the Fort Lewis-based 1st Armored Division in Baghdad was set to end a few weeks ago, but the division is being forced to stay under a stop-loss order, which forbids it from leaving when the military is stretched thin.
Monk thinks that if she could have been part of the process, her cons may have outweighed the recruiter's pros.
"Parents need to know that these recruiters are making decisions with their kids and excluding them from the process," Monk said. "This is too important a decision for parents to be left out of."
WaTiR is working on the Eastside because that's where the members live. The group hopes to become a statewide educational organization and work with school counselors to develop peace-studies alternatives.
"Our kids need a more balanced military point of view," Boyle said. "Learning to drive a tank is not going to help you when you get out. Our view helps students make an informed decision."
So far, in the Bellevue School District, 171 students have opted to have their information withheld, said Elizabeth Noagi, a spokeswoman.
Leslie Fulbright: 206-515-5637 or lfulbright@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company
Recruiting and the law
Section 9528 of the No Child Left Behind Act states that each local educational agency receiving assistance under the act shall provide, on a request made by military recruiters or an institution of higher education, access to secondary-school students' names, addresses and telephone listings.
A secondary-school student or the parent of the student may request that the student's name, address and telephone listing not be released without prior written parental consent.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2001945994_recruit03e.html
The Drifter's Wife
Ellie
:no: