thedrifter
11-29-08, 07:05 AM
November 29, 2008
Services begin recruiting year on a high note
By John Andrew Prime
jprime@gannett.com
The first month of the military's new fiscal year was October, and if its results are any indicator, 2009 will mark advances on the recruiting home front.
Earlier this month, the Pentagon reported that all active and reserve components met or exceeded their October goals. In terms of numbers, the Army led by exceeding its active-duty goal by 1 percent, its Army National Guard goal by 16 percent and its Army Reserve goal by 10 percent, officials said. The Army signed on 5,324 active-duty soldiers in October, as well as 6,487 National Guardsmen and 3,049 reservists.
But in terms of gusto, the Marines were on top, with the active-duty side beating its goal by 4 percent and its Marine Corps Reserve goal topped by 51 percent, officials reported. The Marines recruited 2,983 new active-duty members and 968 reservists.
The Air National Guard exceeded its monthly goal by 20 percent, with 913 recruits.
The Air Force also met its October goals by signing on 3,336 active-duty airmen and 856 reservists. The Navy reached its goals of 2,930 active-duty sailors and 664 reservists.
"That is wild," said Sgt. 1st Class David Cooper, a Louisiana Army National Guard recruiter who has worked in Shreveport and Coushatta and now works at the National Guard Armory on Military Drive in Bossier City, off Swan Lake Road. "With us you can always tell when the trend is rolling our direction. I'm not saying we get our goal every month, but we always seem to pull a stronger number in our area."
Part of the reason for the strength in numbers, he said, is traditional. Louisiana is a patriotic state, and the presence of major military facilities such as Barksdale Air Force Base and Fort Polk, and the retiree and veteran communities they attract, translates into people of recruitment age who have grown up with the military, are comfortable with it, or have grandparents, parents and siblings who have served in uniform.
"If an area is militarily supportive, it will produce bigger numbers," Cooper said, noting the biggest competitors to Shreveport-Bossier City in recruiting people for the services are the Alexandria area and Ruston-Monroe.
But recent strength in numbers may key to recent events, he noted.
"People wanted to see the way the election went," he said. "Even though October was before the election, I think people could see the way it was going to go. That may have had something to do with it. I'm not going to give it all the credit, but I think it played a part.
"But it's also the direction the war has gone," he said. "The surge has been a positive thing, and we have finally gotten the results we were hoping for. And people are not seeing negatives on the military in the media, but are seeing more positives."
He said he hasn't heard the economy cited as a reason by recruits.
"That's all been fairly recent," he said. "The only opinions I'm hearing that's different than before has been the election, and that's just in the last month or two."
David S.C. Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness for the U.S. Department of Defense, says 2008 was the strongest recruiting year since fiscal 2004.
"(It) is a great tribute to the qualities of America's youth today, their willingness to step forward, and their willingness to serve," he said in a release.
"The fact that we are getting some of the best and brightest in our society is a great tribute to the spirit that young people put into the notion of public service today."
More than 92 percent of recruits hold a high school diploma, contrasted with 75 percent of the general U.S. population in the same age range, officials said. And nearly 70 percent of new active-duty recruits came from the top half of those in the United States testing highest in math and verbal aptitude, and about three-quarters of new recruits come from neighborhoods that are at or above the U.S. median annual household income of about $50,000.
Ellie
Services begin recruiting year on a high note
By John Andrew Prime
jprime@gannett.com
The first month of the military's new fiscal year was October, and if its results are any indicator, 2009 will mark advances on the recruiting home front.
Earlier this month, the Pentagon reported that all active and reserve components met or exceeded their October goals. In terms of numbers, the Army led by exceeding its active-duty goal by 1 percent, its Army National Guard goal by 16 percent and its Army Reserve goal by 10 percent, officials said. The Army signed on 5,324 active-duty soldiers in October, as well as 6,487 National Guardsmen and 3,049 reservists.
But in terms of gusto, the Marines were on top, with the active-duty side beating its goal by 4 percent and its Marine Corps Reserve goal topped by 51 percent, officials reported. The Marines recruited 2,983 new active-duty members and 968 reservists.
The Air National Guard exceeded its monthly goal by 20 percent, with 913 recruits.
The Air Force also met its October goals by signing on 3,336 active-duty airmen and 856 reservists. The Navy reached its goals of 2,930 active-duty sailors and 664 reservists.
"That is wild," said Sgt. 1st Class David Cooper, a Louisiana Army National Guard recruiter who has worked in Shreveport and Coushatta and now works at the National Guard Armory on Military Drive in Bossier City, off Swan Lake Road. "With us you can always tell when the trend is rolling our direction. I'm not saying we get our goal every month, but we always seem to pull a stronger number in our area."
Part of the reason for the strength in numbers, he said, is traditional. Louisiana is a patriotic state, and the presence of major military facilities such as Barksdale Air Force Base and Fort Polk, and the retiree and veteran communities they attract, translates into people of recruitment age who have grown up with the military, are comfortable with it, or have grandparents, parents and siblings who have served in uniform.
"If an area is militarily supportive, it will produce bigger numbers," Cooper said, noting the biggest competitors to Shreveport-Bossier City in recruiting people for the services are the Alexandria area and Ruston-Monroe.
But recent strength in numbers may key to recent events, he noted.
"People wanted to see the way the election went," he said. "Even though October was before the election, I think people could see the way it was going to go. That may have had something to do with it. I'm not going to give it all the credit, but I think it played a part.
"But it's also the direction the war has gone," he said. "The surge has been a positive thing, and we have finally gotten the results we were hoping for. And people are not seeing negatives on the military in the media, but are seeing more positives."
He said he hasn't heard the economy cited as a reason by recruits.
"That's all been fairly recent," he said. "The only opinions I'm hearing that's different than before has been the election, and that's just in the last month or two."
David S.C. Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness for the U.S. Department of Defense, says 2008 was the strongest recruiting year since fiscal 2004.
"(It) is a great tribute to the qualities of America's youth today, their willingness to step forward, and their willingness to serve," he said in a release.
"The fact that we are getting some of the best and brightest in our society is a great tribute to the spirit that young people put into the notion of public service today."
More than 92 percent of recruits hold a high school diploma, contrasted with 75 percent of the general U.S. population in the same age range, officials said. And nearly 70 percent of new active-duty recruits came from the top half of those in the United States testing highest in math and verbal aptitude, and about three-quarters of new recruits come from neighborhoods that are at or above the U.S. median annual household income of about $50,000.
Ellie