Posted on 10/29/2004 4:17:52 PM PDT by notkerry
WASHINGTON (Friday, October 29, 2004) — Today, President George W. Bush signed a new law that prohibits colleges and universities that discriminate against students enrolled in the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) from receiving research grants or other funding from the U.S. Department Homeland Security. The legislation, authored by the Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Christopher Cox (R-CA), was included as part of the FY05 Defense Authorization Act.
“This new law makes it clear that if you discriminate against the U.S. Armed Services, you should not try to cash in on U.S. taxpayer funds for national defense, intelligence, and homeland security,” Chairman Cox explained. “These reforms will help protect students’ freedom of choice, and protect our Armed Services from on-campus discrimination.”
In today’s military, successful recruitment of exceptional officers depends on the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, which now accounts for 70% of the U.S. Army's newly commissioned officers. Through ROTC, students receive generous scholarship assistance in return for agreeing to serve their country following graduation. Many of the nation’s universities are happily cashing ROTC scholarship checks, but refusing to permit ROTC activities on campus.
“As Chairman of the Select Committee on Homeland Security,” Chairman Cox stated, “I’ve been deeply gratified and humbled as I’ve seen how many of America’s best and brightest young adults are willing to enlist in the fight against global terrorism. The ROTC program helps these brave young Americans to choose the U.S. armed services as a career path following graduation.”
“Yet, even after the 9/11 attacks on America, a number of our nation’s most prestigious colleges and universities--including my own alma mater, Harvard University--are continuing their Vietnam-era bans on ROTC. Many of these same schools deny students the opportunity to interview on-campus with military recruiters. These policies have a clear effect: to make it harder for their students to choose a career in the military.”
Rep. Cox’s new law, signed today by President Bush, makes two major reforms:
First, it stops the current abusive practice under which schools ban ROTC and military recruiting, but then turn around and cash enormous checks from the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies fighting the war on terror. The new law says that these funds cannot go to schools that discriminate against ROTC or military recruiters.
Second, it ensures that schools accepting national security, intelligence, and homeland security funding provide access to military recruiters that is “equal in quality and scope” to the access provided to other campus recruiters. At some schools, recruiters for the U.S. military have been prevented from putting literature in career services offices, or conducting interviews in career services offices—even though these same privileges are afforded to other campus recruiters. The new law will end this “separate and unequal” treatment for military recruiters. “It is time for universities that so cheerfully accept major funding from our national security, intelligence, and homeland security agencies to support and encourage—not undermine—the national call to service that 9/11 has brought about,” Chairman Cox stated. “That is the message of this new law, and I will work to see that it is enforced.”
You ain't seen nothin' yet. Wait 'till November 3!
That's a good and fair law.
It is about time. As an NROTC graduate in the 60's, I thought it was disgraceful that the Ivy League schools with a few exceptions banned ROTC as a reaction to Vietnam.
Fantastic - now if something can be done about all the Socialist teachers - (grin)
Great news for the people -
Thanks for the article -
Awesome. I didn't know about this--but more needs to be done. Nothing bothered me more at my law school then the way military recruiters were treated. I don't think any government money should go to schools that ban the ROTC (e.g. Harvard) and treat recruiters or ROTC like second-class citizens (e.g. my school Northwestern)
Good work Pres. Bush /salute
The school I went to REQUIRES all students to take 4 credits of ROTC.
ping
This is a start, but it should be all government money, not just homeland security money.
Hell I passed my own bill back in 1968
I sent a letter to my alma mater LaSalle College ( now University ) and told them that contributions to the alumni fund were ceasing ( and have not given since then ) in response to their throwing the ROTC off campus
Good -- I hope this brings my ivy league alma mater to its senses.
Princeton kept theirs, at least during the seventies.
Rumsfeld had an NROTC scholarship at Princeton
http://www.bookrags.com/biography/donald-harold-rumsfeld/
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