The Role of Military Recruiters & JROTC Programs in Latinx-Majority High Schools

• In Event: Latinx Identity and Politics

Abstract

With the United States at war for the better part of two decades, the U.S. Armed Forces has been under tremendous pressure to recruit qualified personnel to maintain the war effort in both Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. They have been aided in their efforts by the adoption of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and its successor, the Every Student Succeeds Act which beginning in 2002, mandated that military recruiters be given the same access to student records as colleges and universities. In the years since the adoption of NCLB, the media has uncovered questionable recruiting practices by members of the U.S. Armed Forces. Therefore, an empirical analysis of recruitment practices is needed. Building on previous work that surveyed high school students, this study focuses on recruitment practices in Latinx high schools in South Texas. Using interview data from high school administrators and faculty we examine both the methods and perceptions of military recruiting. Specifically, we assess the level of access military recruiters have on high school campuses, the recruitment methods employed, the role of JROTC programs in recruitment and the perceptions of the military and recruiters by faculty and administrators. We find that while JROTC instructors are not actively assisting in the recruitment of Latinx students, there is a great deal of division over the value of military service in providing post-secondary educational and economic opportunities.

Authors

• Jessica L. Lavariega Monforti, California Lutheran University

• Adam McGlynn, East Stroudsburg University