Minneapolis schools: Military recruiters criticized
Patrice Relerford, Star Tribune
July 27, 2005

The discussion wasn't about patriotism or a lack of it. But in recent
months, the Minneapolis public schools have received complaints from
students and parents about aggressive military recruitment efforts.
Those complaints have led to questions about the district's legal
obligation to assist those efforts.

Some Minneapolis students have even received calls from recruiters on
their 17th birthdays. For many, those calls were not a welcome
surprise.

"I filled out an opt-out form at the beginning of the school year,"
said Kirsten Kohlhase, 18. "I still got called."

The school board decided Tuesday to get answers from the district's
legal counsel Tuesday.

Kohlhase, a recent South High School graduate, and other students
petitioned the board at the end of last school year to get the word
out to parents and students about the opt-out forms.

"Something's wrong; many students and parents haven't even heard about
it," Kohlhase said. "We're supposed to have the right to not be
approached."

On Tuesday, the school board grappled with what steps, if any, should
be taken to let parents know they can opt out of having their
student's information given to military recruiters.

Public and private schools that receive federal funding must cooperate
with military recruitment efforts under the federal No Child Left
Behind Act. The law also states that if schools fail to voluntarily
turn over information such as students' Social Security numbers, birth
dates and ethnicity, they will be visited by a military officer.

"The chief enforcer is that all of the federal funds we receive could
be lost," Board Member Judy Farmer said.

Districts are required to make parents and students aware of the
opt-out forms. Parents and students must fill out the forms each
school year.

It's not as if nothing has been done. Board members said the district
sent out notices about the waiver at the beginning of the last school
year.

"It's a huge packet of stuff," Board Member Audrey Johnson said. "It
can get lost in the shuffle."

Members hope to help parents by posting the forms on the district's
website, making them available in school offices and printing them in
multiple languages.

While some board members made it clear that the district must follow
the law, others worry that once recruiters have a student's
information, it's unlikely to be expunged from their records.

"Everyone knows military recruiters are going after students that are
poor and students of color. That's many of our students," Board Member
Peggy Flanagan said. "When I talk to students, it's what they're
passionate about."

Patrice Relerford is at prelerford@startribune.com.