BlogWood: MT Archives

Recruiters lie, kids die

Wow. Military recruiters lie to vulnerable high school kids in order to meet their enlistment goals and turn the kids into canon fodder? How utterly, uh, believable.

Laramie Misner was surprised when her daughter Kelsie, a 17-year-old senior at Dunedin High School, came home on the evening of Jan. 7 saying she wanted to join the Florida National Guard.

Misner listened with growing worry when Kelsie told her that a Guard recruiter had visited school that day. Kelsie said the recruiter promised not only that the Guard would pay college tuition, but also that she would not have to leave Florida.

It is absolutely true the Florida National Guard will pay college tuition at a Florida school.

But it is absolutely not the case that recruits can be guaranteed to remain in Florida or even the United States. At this moment, 700 to 800 of Florida's almost 10,000 Guard members are serving honorably in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait.

Yet other students at Dunedin High School thought they heard the recruiter say this, too, and some of them signed up. If you are 18 you can sign for yourself, but if you're 17 your folks have to sign too.

Kelsie was pretty sure her Mom was wrong. That's understandable - whom should a 17-year-old believe, after all, Mom or a complete stranger? So Misner gathered news articles about deployments. Knowing the recruiter needed her signature too, Misner was ready for his followup call. She put Kelsie on the extension to listen in.

"I said to the guy, "Did you honestly tell those kids they would not have to go to Iraq?' " Misner says. She mentioned the articles she had gathered. She says his reply was: "The papers get the National Guard mixed up with the reserves."

Then she started quoting items about Guard units being activated and shipped out. "Well," he said, "there are a few that are going ... it happens on rare occasions." At this point, Misner noticed Kelsie's eyes growing wider.

Misner did not let the matter slide, but visited Dunedin High School, complained, and traded e-mails with principal Mildred Reed. Reed told her she would inform Guard recruiters "that my expectation is that they give realistic presentations."
......

I asked Linda Lerner, a member of the Pinellas School Board, what policy exists on military recruiting visits. She reported it is a welcome and common practice, often arranged at the local school level, whether in job fairs or individual visits.

It turns out that under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, military and college recruiters are entitled to the names, addresses and telephone numbers of high school students. Parents must sign a written notice to keep their child off the list.

Most people know nothing about this name and address requirement, but in Hillsborough County it’s even worse.

A lot of attention was paid a few years ago when a federal funding rule kicked in, requiring public school systems to share student information with the military. No controversy around here, though, as The Hillsborough County School Board has been providing contact info for many years, and at a bargain price, too. For just $61, the military is given a database as well as the use of school property to further their nefarious agenda.

The Hillsborough County school district has been an active supporter for a long time. There was little local effect when the 2002 No Child Left Behind Act required public high schools nationwide to provide recruiters with names, addresses and phone numbers of juniors and seniors because Hillsborough has been supplying such lists for 20 years.

The county charges the military $61 for an annual directory.

Parents who don't want their children contacted can have names removed from the list by filling out a form in their children's student handbooks. Critics say many people aren't aware they can ``opt out'' until after the information has been released.

``It's very overwhelming for parents when they have back- to-school night and they have 15 different waivers and forms to fill out,'' said Mary Kusler, a senior legislative specialist with the American Association of School Administrators in Washington. ``It's very easy for this one to get lost in the mix.''

And it’s not clear form this article if Hillsborough County lets parents opt out. The “No Child” laws call for an opt out option, but if Hillsborough is selling this info on its own, apart from the federal requirements, are they required to provide an opt out, and do they actually provide one?

Helpful Links:

The Objector: Home of the Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors

Not in Our Name: Stop the Military Recruiters

Questions for Recruiters

VFP Lawrence High School exhibit