Recruit pursuit: Schools must give student data to military

For example, Wasatch High School principal Vicci Gappmayer said, "We have informed recruiters that undue influence would result in a 'limited' access to our students. . . . We did this after a few parents complained about the pressure on their students."

Nationally, some schools have fought access to the military. This year the U.S. Supreme Court heard a case by a group of law schools that said they did not want to allow access because they oppose the military's ban on gays.

The court ruled unanimously that requiring such access in return for federal funding did not violate the schools' freedoms of speech and association.

Calling all seniors

Training manuals for recruiters state an ambitious goal: "make a personal or telephone contact with every (high school) senior and graduate qualified for enlistment" every year. Most local recruiters for major arms of the military say they achieve that or come close — except for the Air Force.

"Air Force recruiters are highly outnumbered by the other branches of service. . . . Most contact made by U.S. Air Force recruiters in Utah involves students that have already expressed interest" by responding to mailings or ads, said Staff Sgt. Daniel Short, spokesman for the Air Force's 368th Recruiting Squadron.

The military has specific plans on when to call students. For example, during the summer, Army recruiters are told to contact students who are between their junior and senior years to "plant awareness of the Army in their minds." It says that helps in competition with the other military branches because, "Remember, first to contact, first to contract."

The Army encourages a second contact during the first semester of the senior year when it figures seniors "will start to consider, possibly for the first time ever, their future plans and goals."

It wants a third contact in the early spring. "This is the time reality sets in. For some it is clear that college is not an option, at least for now. Let them know the Army can fulfill their aspirations later on," a recruiting manual says.

As students move on to college, Army recruiters are told to "focus on the freshman class because they will have the highest dropout rate. They often lack both the direction and funds to fully pursue their education."

And a good time to contact them, an Army manual says, is in December when they are home for the holidays. "Remember that many first-year college students do not return to school after the first semester. . . . How is their second semester financial situation?"

'Recruiting' teachers

Recruiters don't just seek military recruits. They also recruit counselors, coaches and teachers to explain military benefits to students. They offer some perks for that help.

For example, some educators are taken on trips to bases around the country.