Recruitment law could mean funding loss

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Universities that refuse to allow military recruiters on their campuses
could lose federal funding.

The Supreme Court recently agreed to hear a case involving whether
or not federal funding can be cut from universities that choose to ban
military recruitment on campus.

The case – brought by a coalition of law schools protesting the
military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy regarding homosexuals in the
service – challenges a 1994 law that says universities might not get
money if they ban military recruiters.

CMU allows military recruiters on campus and receives federal
funding because of it.

“With the military science department, we certainly recruit students
to participate in ROTC,” said Mike Owens, associate dean of students.
“We don’t tend to get people doing military recruitment presentations
for a day, although they would be allowed.”

Owens said federal funding supports research and academic success
programs, supplies money for grants and provides financial aid to
students.

“At a university like CMU – with an operating budget of 300 million
bucks – big portions on the tuition side (of the budget) are federal
loan money,” he said.

Staff Sgt. Matthew Butler, a recruitment officer who focuses on the
CMU campus, said recruitment efforts include a variety of methods. He
said recruitment focuses on educating potential recruits on what the
U.S. Army does and has to offer.

“There are many jobs in the military, it’s not all about carrying a
rifle around the countryside,” he said.

Butler said the recruiters make phone calls and send e-mails, but
also use less traditional methods.

“If someone from the Army band is in the Michigan area, we’ll set up
a presentation in a music class for clarinet players,” he said. “The
Army band typically plays at the White House and other events.”

Maj. Gregg Mays, a military science professor, said there’s
currently not an increase in military recruitment efforts. He said
efforts are being made to maintain a number.

“If people don’t want to be in the military they have the
opportunity to say no,” he said. “If they want to join, they should
have the opportunity to say yes.”

Mays said on-campus recruitment opens up an avenue of information
relating to careers within the Army and financial help the Army
provides for students.

The Supreme Court is expected to reach a decision on the matter by
June.