CHICAGO MILITARY SCHOOLS

Debate rages as city's newest facility is dedicated

By Stephanie Banchero and Carlos Sadovi
Tribune staff reporters
October 15, 2007

Chicago Public Schools, which already has the largest junior military reserve program in the nation, on Monday will commission the country's first public high school run by the U.S. Marines, much to the chagrin of activists who have fought to keep the armed services out of city schools.

The dedication of the Marine Military Academy on the Near West Side comes a few days after Chicago officials announced plans to open an Air Force academy high school in 2009. If that happens, Chicago will become the only public school district in the nation to have academies dedicated to the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines.

District officials say the military-themed schools give students more choices and provide an opportunity to enroll in schools that provide structure, discipline and a focus on leadership. They say the schools emphasize academics, not recruitment.

"We have to think outside the box, and what existed before simply did not work for far too many students," said Chicago Public Schools Chief Arne Duncan. "These schools are popular and have waiting lists, so that tells me parents want more of them." But critics argue the military academies and other district Junior ROTC programs unfairly target poor and minority teenagers for military service.

"We're already the most militarized school system in the nation, and the [district] officials just keep opening more programs, as if they have no problem being a recruitment tool for the military," said Brian Roa, a member of the National Network Opposing Militarization of Youth and a science teacher at Senn High School on the North Side. Senn shares a building with Rickover Naval Academy. "Chicago Public Schools should be in the business of educating children, not finding ways to indoctrinate them into the military."

Nearly a century old, the Junior ROTC was created in 1916 as a way to develop citizenship in teenagers. It grew incrementally for decades until the 1990s, when it dramatically expanded. Today, about 500,000 students are enrolled in high school military programs nationwide.

Chicago has the nation's largest junior cadet program. More than 11,000 students are enrolled in the district's five military academies — most of them low-income minority students — and nearly three-dozen high school-based Junior ROTC programs. The district also has a Middle School Cadet Corps in 20 schools.

In general, the academies operate like regular public high schools. Students take a college prep curriculum and are taught by certified public school teachers. They have the same academic graduation requirements as other students in the district.

Cadets are not required to enlist in the military after graduation, but military personnel work at the schools as teachers and administrators, and all academy students must enlist in the Junior ROTC, wear a military uniform and take a daily ROTC course that includes lessons on leadership, character development, drug prevention and military history. The cadets, as they are known, also stand at attention each morning for a uniform inspection.

"This is not a recruiting tool, but a way to help students succeed at whatever career they might choose," said Army Lt. Col. Rick Mills, who oversees the district's JROTC. "We intend to use the academies to take students who perform in the middle range and use the military model to enhance their postsecondary education."

Last week, at Rickover Naval Academy in Edgewater, students adorned in pressed white shirts, black slacks and shiny black shoes stood alongside their desks, awaiting the start of history class. Hands clasped to their side and feet together, they waited silently during roll call. Once their name was called, they answered, put their hands behind their back and stood at ease.

Many of the students interviewed at the naval high school, which opened two years ago, said they chose the school for its focus on discipline. Most said they do not intend to enlist.

Natassa Bourkas, a 16-year-old who plans to attend college, said she hopes she will stand out from other students applying to colleges.

"When people see that we went to a military school, they know we're obedient, we follow directions, we're disciplined," said the student, who plans to become a pediatric cardiologist.

Numbers are lagging, but despite a stated focus on college prep, the city's military academies have had mixed academic records since the first academy opened in 2000.

Pass rates on the 2006 high school state exam range from about 9 percent to 30 percent at the military academies, compared with the district's average of 32 percent. None of the academies met federal No Child Left Behind testing standards last year.

And the percentage of military academy students enrolling in postsecondary education ranges from 53 percent to 16 percent, according to school district data. The 16 percent at Phoenix Military Academy, which shares a building on the Near West Side with the Marine academy, is the lowest rate in the city, the data showed. The Marine academy opened to students last month, but its official dedication is scheduled for Monday.

Mills acknowledged that the test scores need improvement, but he said that most of the military academies are so new, they need time to jell.

Mills also disputed the college enrollment numbers, saying a survey done by his office showed 78 percent of students who graduated last school year said they had been accepted into college.

But Sheena Gibbs, with the Truth in Recruitment Program, questioned why such low-performing schools should be allowed to expand.

"Let's face it, the academies are about recruitment, not academics," she said. "I think the government feels like these kids are expendable. They are saying, 'You can put the poor and minority students on the front lines.'"

It's difficult to find statistics on how many Junior ROTC students join the military, because not all who enlist do it immediately after graduation. Mills said only about 8 percent of seniors in CPS military programs say they plan to join the service.

But critics point to other numbers touted by national Junior ROTC officials. The Navy, for example, claims 40 percent of its junior cadets enter military service. Chicago school officials do not track how many students go on to a military career.

Rodrigo Montes, a Rickover academy freshman, is proud to say he plans to enlist after he graduates. The 15-year-old has long dreamed of a military career and hopes to be selected for the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., when he graduates.

"I just have a sense of duty to my country," he said. "Hopefully this will help me start serving my country."
—————
sbanchero@tribune.com

csadovi@tribune.com