(I Just discovered this unpublished post from January of 2012 and decided to post it.   It has been a journey!)


OK. I'm back from my visit to the school. Not a pleasant visit with the principal. 
He asked why I am there.

I told him once again that I am there to make sure what the recruiters tell kids is truthful.

 He says that the recruiters only tell kids to stay in school and get good grades. 

I asked if he sat in the room with them to hear them say that and he said, no, that is what the recruiters tell HIM they say.
 I said well, then he is a more trusting person than me. 

He asked if I had heard them say otherwise and I responded that when I am in the room listening to them that my presence pretty much guarantees that they are going to NOT say anything misleading to the children.
 I honestly cannot tell if he believes what he says or if he is playing me. 



He received an email from someone who wanted to write a letter to the editor of the local paper and they wanted to know how many kids join the military from that school.   I asked them that LAST year and they said they don't keep track.  
Apparently they do, as the principal showed me some figures that they emailed in response to that inquiry.   The numbers that he showed me were very small.   He said that these numbers reflect what they hear about kids who have left the school.  I think the legal word for that is hearsay and that it is my exact idea of how a school would account for it's graduates.

He said by law, that the recruiters can be at the school.   I agreed that it was legal, but the school district could limit how OFTEN the recruiters are there.   He did not understand.  I told him the school district sets the policy as to how often a recruiter can be on campus,  and he did not appear to comprehend that.  So it appears that their non-policy about this is to have recruiters come to the school as often as the recruiter wishes.   
I said a job fair once a year that included military recruiters would satisfy the law and they would get their federal monies.
He said that he would not want to restrict colleges to coming out once a year if there was a job fair.
Colleges don't talk to the 7-10th graders.   Geez.

While in the room with Anthony the recruiter, a 10th grader came in to ask the recruiter if he had ever shot a gun.   Anthony replied yes, but only at practice targets.
Then the kid asked "What about that lady with the sign about 12 year olds that is out on the sidewalk in the morning?"
heh
Anthony pointed to me.
heh
I told the kid that the school had a policy last year that the 7th and 8th graders could not speak to the recruiters and that the policy had changed back.   The kid said that was just wrong for a recruiter to talk to the little kids cause they don't know what they want and they are under their parent's control until they are 18.  
heh
The kid asked Anthony if he was a recruiter and Anthony hedged that question by saying he was like a "guide."   Hmmm.
Makes me wonder what was up with that.

 
The Navy recruiter was leaving the principal's office when I arrived and when I went to the classroom to sit with the recruiter - I could see that our relationship had changed since last time we met. I think that someone spoke to him about me. 
More later.

I did not take this video, someone with me did.
   
It is not your typical PE class calisthetics.   This "exercise" has on person on the ground, face up, and other public school students on each side and they are to drag the inert student in the middle.   Yes.   Just like in a war movie.  Yes. Just like in boot camp.   Except that this is in public school. 


They also had students carrying  other students across their back and walking for 25 feet or so.   Kinda like you would carry a wounded comrade in a move.  Or in Afghanistan, or in this public school when the Marine recruiter is the teacher.


The physical education class was led by the Marine Corps RECRUITER and his assistant was a graduate from this small rural school who had joined the Marine Corps.    I do not think either of those two have a degree in physical education.