Military Recruiting: Original Text

 Before we begin, I have some important information. This is the first in an ongoing series of investigations into military recruiting. This series is a Blackhawk Maverick original. You can only find it here. This article is the original text of the article titled "Military Recruiting", as seen in the Blackhawk Beat's May 2022 issue. The continuation of this series, as well as the article exposing the College Board, is coming soon. I don't know when it will come, but it is coming. 

 

It is a normal day at Blackhawk High School. As seniors contemplate their plans for the future, in the green cafeteria, a recruiter from a military branch arrives on campus, ready to talk to students. Some may ask why there are there. This investigation will provide information on what they are doing here. In this investigation, I will explain why recruiters come and how they target youth. 

 

 

By law, schools have to allow military recruiters on campus once a semester. Many schools, including Blackhawk High School, have recruiters come more times and give them more access to students. For example, Blackhawk gives them a seat in the cafeteria, where they can talk to almost any student that visits. In the winter, I began tracking how many recruiters came from military and non-military sources. I have found that twelve military recruiters have come to the school since I began my tracking. This is more than the six visits from all other postsecondary options and organizations. Besides these visits, recruiters visit for events, such as the USMC Sports Leadership Academy. These visits and events are important to recruiters, as military research has found that contact with a recruiter increases the chance that someone joins the military.  

 

 

It is not just outside research that proves the military targets students. The Army’s Assistant Secretary for Manpower and Reserve Affairs said that they wanted to target youth ages 12-15. Those efforts include an esports team, which has been described as “part of the recruiting force.” This focus on younger people is quite concerning, seeing that multiple sources and studies have confirmed that brain development continues past 18 years old, and even into the mid-20s. Teenagers’ brains are less developed in areas related to decision making. This can lead to impulsive decisions, such as joining the military when it is not in the student’s best interest. 

 

I talked to an Air Force recruiter that visited on May 3, 2022. He said that recruiters visit to show the opportunities in the Air Force. He also said that teenagers are a target demographic due to them looking for a career, and the military being a career path available.