Officials defend newly adopted regulations
By: Rachel Silverman
A former Princeton Regional Board of Education member criticized the current board Tuesday night for toughening up the district’s policy on military recruitment.
John Clearwater, who spent 30 years in the Navy and additional time as a college recruiter, characterized the new protocol as a "slippery slope."
He added, "It is clear to me in our schools that military recruiters are not welcome. They are treated in a significantly different manner than other Mercer County schools."
According to the district protocol, which was approved last month, recruiters may be at Princeton High School only by appointment, and they’re not allowed to meet with students unless a guidance counselor is present. The recruiters also must be at a site pre-approved by the principal.
The protocol stipulates that literature may be distributed only through the guidance office, and only when requested by a student.
Furthermore, the protocol states that all students have the right to opt out of passing their contact information to recruiters. Two home mailings in Spanish and English will afford this opportunity to all rising upperclassmen and their families.
"I encourage you to be very vigilant in the message you are sending," Mr. Clearwater told the board. "If there was no war going on, would your position be the same?"
Board member Walter Bliss responded. "Does the war in Iraq influence my outlook?" he said. "Yes, absolutely. But that’s not where this issue comes from.
"If they are recruited under our auspices, we want to make sure they are truly volunteers," he explained.
Superintendent Judy Wilson also tried to separate policy and politics.
"There was an absence of guidelines," she said. "We’ve tried to provide bounds, not barriers."
The district’s new policy is set against a backdrop of the No Child Left Behind Act, passed in 2002. The act mandates that public high schools release all student information to the military unless students specifically choose to have their names removed from the list.

