This summer, I worked with Professor Jaime Del Razo to study the efforts and effects of the United States military to recruit individuals directly from high school. Since the All-Volunteer Force (AVF) replaced the draft in 1973, the military has shifted its tactics to maintain its size and staffing requirements through recruitment. Such tactics include building relationships with high schools and accessing student information through policies like the NCLB (No Child Left Behind Act) and the ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act). Because the AVF military competes with the labor market to meet its quota, schools and the military cooperate, allowing recruiters to sell the promise of education, health care, stable housing, and a respected career.

We examined the complex dynamic between the military, schools, and its students who have limited options following high school. We spent numerous hours at the West Point Military Academy’s Library seeking a broad range of sources that shed light on high school recruitment, contributing to the existing literature review in Professor Del Razo’s upcoming book. Additionally, we scoured research centers and DoD (Department of Defense) sources for more data on high school recruitment, as well as potential legislative changes in the National Defense Authorization Act that may impact males after turning 18 and potentially all genders. Lastly, we conducted a focus group interviewing veterans who were enlisted directly or shortly after high school. Following the focus group, I executed the first-round coding of the focus group data, searching for themes and patterns across the focus group participants.

This work especially mattered to Professor Del Razo and me because we are both products of the school-to-military pipeline. Through this gratifying research, the stories of many women and men I served with who were recruited from high school have earned a place in academics and a study of militarism in the United States.