2/28: People to Tell SF Board of Ed to Cut all School Ties to the Military

REPORT ON S.F. SCHOOL BOARD MEETING:

The following resolution was introduced to the S.F.
Unified School District Board of Education meeting
last evening, Thursday, Feb.23.

5. Resolution No. 62-14Sp1 – Authorization to Approve Board
Policy Regarding Equal Access for Recruiters

The claim was that since "No Child Left Behind" funds
(about $40 million for San Francisco Schools) requires that
the military have equal access to students whenever other
recruiters--Colleges and Universities--come to the schools
to talk to children about their future opportunities, the board
felt it was necessary to lay out guidelines for military visits to
ensure equality of access to the kids.

As the situation stands in S.F., students and their parents
have signed the "Opt In-Out" forms by over 98 percent and
very few of those "Opted In" to military contact and recruitment.
So, since the "opt out" forms have thwarted the military ghouls,
they are seeking yet another way to get to our kids. I guess
their $3 billion dollar recruitment advertising budget is not
producing the results they would like.

And, as it stood before this resolution, not all schools
invited the military to their "career days" even though
the colleges were represented. It was voluntary on the part
of the career counselors whether or not to invite them.
This resolution will make it mandatory for schools to have
the military present at all such events--even when new
scholarships are offered by particular schools of higher
learning. Yet it does not require that counter-recruiters
be present at the same time as the military. Instead, it leaves
it open whether to have counter-recruiters come at all or
perhaps, allow counter-recruiters on another day or to
just put up with us handing out counter-recruitment
material outside of school doors. (The distinction was
made that "counter recruiters" are not "recruiters" and
do not offer alternative career opportunities.)

The resolution will also spell out the terms of announcing
the military visits before hand which will require real
coordination on the part of the antiwar movement to
counter the military when they do invade our schools.
The wording in the resolution reads that any "recruiter"
can visit the school as often as "any other recruiter". And
each Military branch is to be considered separate from the
other. I.E. if SFSU comes to the school then someone from
the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and National Guard can
also come! A suggestion was made that this be amended
to allow only one military recruiter for all branches at
any one time.

With the passage of Prop. I, to stop military recruitment
in the schools, the Board of Education is mandated
to at least try to keep the military out of our schools.
What is disturbing is that even though it is clear that
the voters and residents of San Francisco are opposed
to the war and to military recruitment in the schools,
the board is not mounting a vigorous fight against
the No Child Left Behind Act which comes up for
renewal this year. They should be writing to other
Boards of Education throughout the country to oppose
the military holding our kids hostage in order to fund
the schools. What is most disgusting about the whole
thing is that the overwhelming majority of funds from
No Child Left Behind goes to K-8th grade and not to the
High Schools where the ghouls want to hunt! So the older
kids must sacrifice their lives for the education of their
younger siblings or schoolmates.

This is another issue that the antiwar movement must
address and fight and why it is so important for us to
unite our efforts.

For instance, with the world headquarters of Bechtel right here
in San Francisco, the Board, in cooperation with the antiwar
movement, could mount a campaign to get the $40 million
from them and other such multi-billion dollar corporations
headquartered or stationed in San Francisco so we can say
NO! to No Child Left Behind and fulfill the wishes of the
majority of San Francisco voters to get the military out
of our schools including JROTC.

The antiwar movement could mount a campaign to pull
any "breaks" offered to such corporations in our city until
they come up with the money our schools need to keep the
military out of our schools. The people of San
Francisco must demand that the money for our schools
take priority over military spending. And that those
corporations based in San Francisco who have profited
off the war should foot the bill for our schools. With a
budget the size of Bechtell's profits our schools could
bring back art, music, dance, swimming, new laboratories,
computers, nurses, etc. and, higher pay for teachers.

This resolution No. 62-14Sp1 will first be brought
to the Curriculum Committee tentatively scheduled for
March 9 then to the whole Board for a vote on March 28.
(These dates are tentative and will be posted to
the Board of Ed website for confirmation at:
http://portal.sfusd.edu/template/default.cfm?page=board
We will announce the confirmed dates as well.)

We urge everyone to come to the meetings
and speak against this resolution at every
opportunity.

COME TO THE NEXT BOARD MEETING TO
DEMAND THAT THE S.F. BOARD OF EDUCATION
CUT ALL SCHOOL TIES TO THE MILITARY!

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 7:00 PM
Irving G. Breyer Board Meeting Room
555 Franklin Street, First Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102

If you wish to speak at the Board meeting
Call: 241-6427 to get on the speakers list.
Monday between 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tuesday, between 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.