thedrifter
11-05-07, 07:00 AM
Incentives for service
Monday, November 05, 2007 -
By Mary Fortune
Staff Writer
Tony Hicks always planned to join the military, but a deal that allows delayed deployment, a paid education and eventually earning a $20,000 bonus made him a soldier sooner rather than later.
"I use the National Guard for the benefits, I guess, but I've always wanted to serve my country," said Pfc. Hicks, an ROTC student at UTC who joined the Tennessee Army National Guard two weeks ago. "I thought out the process before I decided to do anything about it."
Responding to the demands of a protracted war and a drive to expand America's military, recruiters are offering incentives and options for would-be soldiers. From five-figure enlistment bonuses to a new program that allows recruits to start in the National Guard and then shift to the full-time Army, the business of selling military service to an all-volunteer force has changed completely in the last decade, experts said.
"You have a very large need for soldiers and Marines now," said Richard H. Kohn, professor of history, peace, war and defense at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "You attract or convince people with whatever sweetness you can."
Master Sgt. Kevin Hudgins, who supervises recruiters in Southeast Tennessee for the Army National Guard, said the job has been transformed in the seven years he has been recruiting.
"It's changed dramatically with everything going on in Iraq and Afghanistan," he said. "The natural response is, 'I don't want to go over there and get killed.' "
When Master Sgt. Hudgins started recruiting in 2000, the Guard offered $3,000 enlistment bonuses and 75 percent tuition assistance, he said. Now the organization offers options that range from help earning a GED to $20,000 signing bonuses, Master Sgt. Hudgins said.
"We're getting to be the Wal-Mart of branches," he said.
Lt. Col. Eric Goslowsky, recruiting and retention commander for the Tennessee Army National Guard, said the young soldiers recruiters are courting expect choices.
"They have 1,000 TV channels, 10 game platforms and more restaurants than they can count," he wrote in an e-mail. "Why not offer them more enlistment options?"
The Tennessee Army National Guard had 10,785 members in fiscal 2007, putting the force at 101 percent of its mission and over its recruitment goals, Lt. Col. Goslowsky said.
Pushing the force
Dr. Kohn said several factors work against recruiters, including tremendous wartime pressure on the armed forces and a steady rise in the number of high school graduates who enter college.
Two years ago, the U.S. military spent nearly $550 million on bonuses, Dr. Kohn said. Recent reports from The Associated Press estimate that number grew to $1 billion in 2006.
President Bush called for a larger military, and Department of Defense officials recommended the Army increase by 65,000 soldiers for a total of 547,000 over the next few years. The number of Marines also is expected to grow by 27,000 to 202,000.
The Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force all met or slightly exceeded their national recruiting goals for fiscal 2007, according to the Department of Defense. The Army and Air National Guards fell short of their goals, but other reserve forces hit their recruitment targets.
Guard and Reserve forces are being used particularly hard right now, Dr. Kohn said, and that discourages some who might otherwise consider joining.
But bonuses and incentives appear to be working, particularly in retention, Dr. Kohn said.
"We do know the incentives are keeping people in who are already there -- particularly the bonuses -- and that's a great plus in the sense that you don't have to train these people," he said.
Re-enlistment in the Tennessee Army National Guard can bring bonuses up to $15,000 for a six-year stint, said Spc. Tony Dankowski, who works in retention for the Guard. Recently, three soldiers serving in Iraq with the Chattanooga-based 1/181st Field Artillery Battalion extended their enlistments and got their bonuses tax-free because they're overseas, he said.
Kenny Thompson, the public affairs officer for the U.S. Army recruiting battalion that covers most of Tennessee and most of Kentucky, said incentives help but "the bottom line is most people still join because they want to serve."
"They know now that if they join it's very possible they will be deployed," he said.
To help meet its recruiting goals, the Army bumped up its age limit for recruits twice in 2006, first from 35 to 40, then to 42, he said. And in addition to cash enlistment bonuses of $20,000, recruits can qualify for up to $65,000 in college loan repayment and tuition assistance, Mr. Thompson said.
The battalion, however, didn't meet its recruitment goal for 2007, he said, finishing the fiscal year at 88 percent of its target, or 1,779 recruits, he said. The Army Reserve branch was at 97 percent of its goal, or 585 recruits for the year, Mr. Thompson said.
Making the decision
Pfc. Hicks, 18, graduated from East Ridge High School in May and missed earning a Tennessee Lottery scholarship. He took out a loan to cover his first semester at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, but he looked to the National Guard for a way to cover the rest.
"I just decided the quicker I signed up for the National Guard the quicker I can get tuition assistance," he said.
His father, a machinist who served 13 years in the National Guard and deployed in Desert Storm, wasn't thrilled with the idea of his son joining the Guard just yet, Pfc. Hicks said.
"He was worried about me slacking off in school and losing the College First and getting sent to Iraq," he said.
But by doing split training over the next couple of summers and remaining in the ROTC program at UTC, he will have the chance to complete his education before he is tapped for deployment.
Sgt. Mike Bohannon, an instructor in UTC's ROTC program, said at least nine of the 29 members of the program already are in the Guard or Reserve. Cadet Maj. Evelyn Hall, 24, has been in the Army Reserve for over a year and is a contracted ROTC cadet, who cannot be deployed until graduation.
"I needed money for school," she said. "And this is a good way to serve my country."
Lt. John West, 21, a graduate of Georgia Military College, works with the UTC ROTC program and is in the National Guard while he completes his bachelor's degree at UTC.
The son of a retired master sergeant, Lt. West expects eventually to be deployed. "If you join the Army, that's what the Army does," he said.
Maj. Ben Smith, who heads the UTC ROTC program, said students often join the military for tuition money.
"Many find it's a good fit; some find it's not," he said. "It provides a lot, but it demands a lot, too."
On Nov. 17, Pfc. Hicks will attend his first National Guard drill and begin earning his $211.70 monthly pay for National Guard service. His father still is not thrilled with his son's decision.
Pfc. Hicks' mother, Ruby, said her husband has not warmed to the idea. Mrs. Hicks, a secretary at East Ridge Middle School said, "He told him, 'I might not be able to stop you, but I can voice my opinion,' which he did."
She and her husband worry about the possibility that their oldest son might get bored with school and end up getting deployed with the National Guard before he completes his education, she said.
"He can't be failing any classes," she said. "If he does, they can yank him out."
And they know their son eventually will have to leave for military duty, whether he completes school or not, she said.
"We know he's going to get sent somewhere," she said. "It's just a matter of where and when."
E-mail Mary Fortune at mfortune@timesfreepress.com
Ellie
Monday, November 05, 2007 -
By Mary Fortune
Staff Writer
Tony Hicks always planned to join the military, but a deal that allows delayed deployment, a paid education and eventually earning a $20,000 bonus made him a soldier sooner rather than later.
"I use the National Guard for the benefits, I guess, but I've always wanted to serve my country," said Pfc. Hicks, an ROTC student at UTC who joined the Tennessee Army National Guard two weeks ago. "I thought out the process before I decided to do anything about it."
Responding to the demands of a protracted war and a drive to expand America's military, recruiters are offering incentives and options for would-be soldiers. From five-figure enlistment bonuses to a new program that allows recruits to start in the National Guard and then shift to the full-time Army, the business of selling military service to an all-volunteer force has changed completely in the last decade, experts said.
"You have a very large need for soldiers and Marines now," said Richard H. Kohn, professor of history, peace, war and defense at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "You attract or convince people with whatever sweetness you can."
Master Sgt. Kevin Hudgins, who supervises recruiters in Southeast Tennessee for the Army National Guard, said the job has been transformed in the seven years he has been recruiting.
"It's changed dramatically with everything going on in Iraq and Afghanistan," he said. "The natural response is, 'I don't want to go over there and get killed.' "
When Master Sgt. Hudgins started recruiting in 2000, the Guard offered $3,000 enlistment bonuses and 75 percent tuition assistance, he said. Now the organization offers options that range from help earning a GED to $20,000 signing bonuses, Master Sgt. Hudgins said.
"We're getting to be the Wal-Mart of branches," he said.
Lt. Col. Eric Goslowsky, recruiting and retention commander for the Tennessee Army National Guard, said the young soldiers recruiters are courting expect choices.
"They have 1,000 TV channels, 10 game platforms and more restaurants than they can count," he wrote in an e-mail. "Why not offer them more enlistment options?"
The Tennessee Army National Guard had 10,785 members in fiscal 2007, putting the force at 101 percent of its mission and over its recruitment goals, Lt. Col. Goslowsky said.
Pushing the force
Dr. Kohn said several factors work against recruiters, including tremendous wartime pressure on the armed forces and a steady rise in the number of high school graduates who enter college.
Two years ago, the U.S. military spent nearly $550 million on bonuses, Dr. Kohn said. Recent reports from The Associated Press estimate that number grew to $1 billion in 2006.
President Bush called for a larger military, and Department of Defense officials recommended the Army increase by 65,000 soldiers for a total of 547,000 over the next few years. The number of Marines also is expected to grow by 27,000 to 202,000.
The Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force all met or slightly exceeded their national recruiting goals for fiscal 2007, according to the Department of Defense. The Army and Air National Guards fell short of their goals, but other reserve forces hit their recruitment targets.
Guard and Reserve forces are being used particularly hard right now, Dr. Kohn said, and that discourages some who might otherwise consider joining.
But bonuses and incentives appear to be working, particularly in retention, Dr. Kohn said.
"We do know the incentives are keeping people in who are already there -- particularly the bonuses -- and that's a great plus in the sense that you don't have to train these people," he said.
Re-enlistment in the Tennessee Army National Guard can bring bonuses up to $15,000 for a six-year stint, said Spc. Tony Dankowski, who works in retention for the Guard. Recently, three soldiers serving in Iraq with the Chattanooga-based 1/181st Field Artillery Battalion extended their enlistments and got their bonuses tax-free because they're overseas, he said.
Kenny Thompson, the public affairs officer for the U.S. Army recruiting battalion that covers most of Tennessee and most of Kentucky, said incentives help but "the bottom line is most people still join because they want to serve."
"They know now that if they join it's very possible they will be deployed," he said.
To help meet its recruiting goals, the Army bumped up its age limit for recruits twice in 2006, first from 35 to 40, then to 42, he said. And in addition to cash enlistment bonuses of $20,000, recruits can qualify for up to $65,000 in college loan repayment and tuition assistance, Mr. Thompson said.
The battalion, however, didn't meet its recruitment goal for 2007, he said, finishing the fiscal year at 88 percent of its target, or 1,779 recruits, he said. The Army Reserve branch was at 97 percent of its goal, or 585 recruits for the year, Mr. Thompson said.
Making the decision
Pfc. Hicks, 18, graduated from East Ridge High School in May and missed earning a Tennessee Lottery scholarship. He took out a loan to cover his first semester at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, but he looked to the National Guard for a way to cover the rest.
"I just decided the quicker I signed up for the National Guard the quicker I can get tuition assistance," he said.
His father, a machinist who served 13 years in the National Guard and deployed in Desert Storm, wasn't thrilled with the idea of his son joining the Guard just yet, Pfc. Hicks said.
"He was worried about me slacking off in school and losing the College First and getting sent to Iraq," he said.
But by doing split training over the next couple of summers and remaining in the ROTC program at UTC, he will have the chance to complete his education before he is tapped for deployment.
Sgt. Mike Bohannon, an instructor in UTC's ROTC program, said at least nine of the 29 members of the program already are in the Guard or Reserve. Cadet Maj. Evelyn Hall, 24, has been in the Army Reserve for over a year and is a contracted ROTC cadet, who cannot be deployed until graduation.
"I needed money for school," she said. "And this is a good way to serve my country."
Lt. John West, 21, a graduate of Georgia Military College, works with the UTC ROTC program and is in the National Guard while he completes his bachelor's degree at UTC.
The son of a retired master sergeant, Lt. West expects eventually to be deployed. "If you join the Army, that's what the Army does," he said.
Maj. Ben Smith, who heads the UTC ROTC program, said students often join the military for tuition money.
"Many find it's a good fit; some find it's not," he said. "It provides a lot, but it demands a lot, too."
On Nov. 17, Pfc. Hicks will attend his first National Guard drill and begin earning his $211.70 monthly pay for National Guard service. His father still is not thrilled with his son's decision.
Pfc. Hicks' mother, Ruby, said her husband has not warmed to the idea. Mrs. Hicks, a secretary at East Ridge Middle School said, "He told him, 'I might not be able to stop you, but I can voice my opinion,' which he did."
She and her husband worry about the possibility that their oldest son might get bored with school and end up getting deployed with the National Guard before he completes his education, she said.
"He can't be failing any classes," she said. "If he does, they can yank him out."
And they know their son eventually will have to leave for military duty, whether he completes school or not, she said.
"We know he's going to get sent somewhere," she said. "It's just a matter of where and when."
E-mail Mary Fortune at mfortune@timesfreepress.com
Ellie