SFUSD to consider policy limiting military recruitment in San Francisco schools

By Adam Martin, Bay City News Service

March 11, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) - San Francisco school officials met Thursday to put the finishing touches on a policy that would limit recruiters' access to district campuses.

Specifically, the proposed policy aims to limit military recruiters' access to students, San Francisco Unified School District board member Dr. Dan Kelly said today. Kelly said the district implemented a policy in 1991 banning military recruiters.

According to the federal No Child Left Behind act, however, if schools allow any type of recruiters they must also allow military recruiters or lose federal funding.

"That means that if a company comes to do recruiting -- which it never does, but colleges do -- you must offer equal and similar access to military recruiters,'' Kelly said.

School board members responded by developing a proposed policy that will limit all recruiters' access to campuses.

"We have seen that military recruiters come to campus and do whatever they want,'' Kelly said, including showing up unannounced and intercepting students on their way to classes.

The proposed policy went before the school board for a first reading Feb. 14. After that initial review, two committees examined and amended the policy, Kelly said.

The curriculum and program committee, comprised of several school board members, conducted Thursday's review.

The policy would limit recruiting days to two per school year, make recruiters arrange their visits with the principal in order to avoid conflicting with test days or other school functions and limit recruiters' activity to a specific room or space on campus where they can be under the supervision of a faculty member.

In addition, an organization with a mobile workstation such as a van with loudspeakers would not be allowed to contact students on their way to or from school. Doing so, Kelly said, would cause the organization to be barred from future recruiting.

The full board will review the final proposed policy at its meeting next Tuesday.

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