No Child Left Behind and military recruitment of students

January 9, 11:54 AMNY Education ExaminerLorri Giovinco-Harte

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As the merits of NCLB are publicly debated, we rarely hear mention of the fact that in order for schools to receive funding through the act, they must allow the U.S. Military to have access to personal information about high school students.  

Section 9528-Armed Forces Recruiter Access to Students and Student Recruiting Information states:

Each local educational agency receiving assistance under this Act shall provide, on a request made by military recruiters or an institution of higher education, access to secondary school students names, addresses, and telephone
listings.

There is a stipulation which allows parents to block such information from being released without parental consent, but the request must be made in writing.  According to NCLB, schools are responsible for notifying parents about the information being released as well as their right to opt out.  Such notification need not be more than a pamphlet or mention in a student handbook.

In addition, under Section 9528, schools can no longer deny military recruiters access to public schools:

Each local educational agency receiving assistance under this Act shall provide military recruiters the same access to secondary school students as is provided generally to post secondary educational institutions or to prospective employers of those students.

In the past, several states including New York and Connecticut had barred military recruiters from schools, but the passage of NCLB has overruled the state decisions.

Schools that do not allow for the access outlined in Section 9528 of NCLB will be in jeopardy of losing funding.

You can find guidelines for Section 9528 at the  U.S. Department of Education's website.

 Parents in New York City can also find information on the DOE's website.