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Focus is on better educational benefits |
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Life's
a challenge at the Army's basic training center
at Fort Jackson, S.C. Above, soldiers pull other
recruits through mud at the Endurance Obstacle
Course
(Staff Photo by Vincent Z. Whaley)
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By Vincent Z. Whaley
Johnson
City Press Staff Writer
(Published Sunday, March 5, 2000)
FORT JACKSON, S.C. — The number of people serving
in the U.S. armed forces is at an all-time low. In the
Army alone, approximately 122,000 volunteers need to
be recruited by the end of the year.
To help achieve that goal, the Army has focused on educational
benefits to entice prospective recruits.
"There are many opportunities for young people
today, and we want to be one of their choices. We consider
ourselves partners in education," said Col. Wayne
H. Stephens, commandant of the U.S. Army Recruiting
and Retention School at Fort Jackson.
"In no way do we want someone to drop out of school,
go get a GED and join the Army. That is not the game,
because their job selections are very much less without
a high school diploma. Not all job opportunities are
great opportunities unless you have an education. You
see 'Help Wanted' and 'Hiring' signs hanging up all
over the fast-food places for minimum wage and no benefits.
It's those individuals we want to talk to for doing
something better with their lives."
In addition to the Montgomery GI Bill, under which soldiers
donate $100 of their pay for 12 consecutive months and
receive thousands of dollars for college tuition, and
supplemental Department of Defense College Funds, the
Army offers other programs to ensure its soldiers receive
a quality education.
GED Plus is designed to assist high school dropouts
with earning the equivalent of a high school diploma
in exchange for a minimum two years of military service
after the diploma is attained. College First provides
the opportunity for high school graduates to attend
two years of college before entering the Army.
"When an individual comes into the Army who wants
to go to college, they need to know that we're also
going to teach them a skill, maybe a skill that they
can use when they get out of the Army," Stephens
said. "And when they get out, they have learned
some discipline, leadership and management skills and
are ready to go through college."
If a recruit has already attended college and has a
substantial loan payment, Stephens said the Army will
even repay a large portion of those loans up to $65,000.
"But we are generally looking for young folks who
have never been in the military services or college
before," the colonel said. "We try to get
to high school students while they're in high school
because if they make a job selection while in high school,
when they graduate, the job selections are much greater.
"That's why we have the Delayed Entry Program.
We want them to make a decision up-front, and they can
be in that program for up to 365 days."
Related VZW stories: Today's
Army puts LDRSHIP into service, Serving
country helps local man build college fund
Story and Photographs
Copyright © 2000-2004 by Vincent Z. Whaley
and the Johnson
City Press,
204 W. Main St., Johnson City, Tennessee 37605,
423.929.3111.
All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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