Military path should be promoted

Dear Harbinger Editors,

Algonquin has been shoving the idea of college down our throats from our freshman year up until our senior year, but the school officials never talk about the military. (“School should emphasize military as an alternate path” Editorial, Dec. 10). This school has a reputation of sending kids to very selective colleges, but I feel like the administration fears kids losing their lives and how it could taint their reputation. In my graduating class of 2019, only three out of three hundred and sixty four kids plan to serve in the military. This number is less than one percent of the grade, and I wonder why haven’t I heard anything about this alternative path?

I witnessed two students try to set up an assembly that would bring in members of the military to tell stories of their service. Unfortunately the administration wouldn’t allow it to happen because it involved bringing in adults who were still currently serving. According to the administration, it goes against a school policy and I’m confused on why serving your country seems so taboo? A big misconception is that you completely miss out on college education if you join the military. However this is not the case because The Reserve Officers Training Center (ROTC) exists. The ROTC trains students to become officers, but it also offers the students a typical college life at the same time. Algonquin has not once mentioned hint of this or the wide variety of scholarships that are offered from these programs. Nor do they talk about how the government pays for a solid amount of tuition once.

Although students could potentially risk their lives in the military, it should still be an option for the brave and for those who don’t want to do another four years of school. The solution here is simple, provide a few meetings for displaying the wide array of opportunities to serve for your country. Having a couple of recruiters stop by the school wouldn’t cause any harm. Besides, without the military, we wouldn’t have the benefits and protection we often overlook in our everyday lives. People fight and die to protect our country; the least we could do is advocate for something incredibly noble.

 

Sincerely,

Cameron Needels 2019