National Obligated Service


In an Oregonian newspaper article on May 10, 2007 Oregon’s Governor Ted Kulongoski made a bold and visionary statement for America when he suggested that the all-volunteer military is becoming obsolete and that mandatory two years of national service was the answer. Could it be possible that from a “Blue” state with virtually no real military footprint springs forth an idea to lead the country? Yes! As the Commander in Chief of the Oregon National Guard, the Governor is absolutely right.

As America stands poised at the crossroads where decisions made during the coming three to five years may well portend the kind of America that exists in seventy-five years; the critical challenges appear to be education, energy, economy and the environment. Hopefully “Baby Boomers” have learned that waiting for a single political leader to step forward and embrace all these issues is asking a great deal. A systemic change from the grass roots is preferable.

At the Olympic Institute for Leadership Development we extol the virtues of leadership and public service. After nine years of working with young men and women mostly of high school age who desire to attend the federal service academies, college ROTC programs, military junior colleges, prep schools and state maritime academies I have also concluded that what America needs is National Obligated Service to be enacted by the 110th Congress. There are simply too few young men and women who are stepping up to embrace the ideals of leadership and service to their country.

The Boomer generation made significant mistakes with their children by basically telling them “to go figure it out for themselves.” If there ever was an example of a “child left behind’ this is it. Most young people today have little understanding of their post high school education and career options. Most are not prepared to start college right out of high school, let alone know what path they really wish to pursue. Many who start college soon flunk out or quit and never return to their studies.

We are on our way to losing yet a second generation. There still remains time to re-introduce to young people the value of service to their communities, country and fellow man. We need to re-instill “human connectivity,” which in turn will hopefully lead to a return of civility in America. We have far too many “gated communities,” both psychological and physical in our country. Self reliance is an admirable trait, but in the event of national crisis, cohesiveness, citizenship and concern for one’s neighbor are far more valuable.

Call it mandatory, compulsory or obligated, it all boils down to the same: two years of service either military or civilian to your country as the price of admission to this land of freedom and opportunity. Before we go very far it is important to state that our proposal does not lean to and or overtly favor military service as the chosen selection. Quite the contrary, we wish to develop a selection of civilian service opportunities that will be inviting to our youth as well as encourage creative new solutions for our country’s problems.

With National Service many believe the day will come when the US Military will have to compete with a much broader spectrum of the youth population rather than nibbling around the edge. They will also be forced to be totally truthful in their promises, and more importantly deliver on their promises. The current Congressional authorization for 100, 000 more troops over the next ten years for the Army and the Marine Corp will be a daunting task. Our military recruiting system for both enlisted and officer ranks is irretrievably broken and requires a major overhaul.

If the estimated 20 to 30 million new immigrants are added to our national population in the next ten years one can easily surmise the military’s new recruiting strategy. No doubt they will use the “path to citizenship” as a major inducement. This could lead to a 21st Century version of a paid “mercenary military” which would not be in the best interests of our country. Furthermore, should this scenario occur the gap of service for our young people will grow even wider as many will regrettably take the attitude of letting someone else shoulder the burden of military service.

Military enlisted recruiters, primarily Army and Marine, have inflicted serious damage with their indiscretions and often antiquated and ethically questionable tactic’s and methods in dealing with our young people in efforts to gain an enlistment. The repercussions of their activities coupled with the gross mis-management of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have resulted in a palatable breach of trust between Moms, Dads, legal guardians, school counselors, coaches and their government.

Our ability to raise a standing army of the quantity, quality and diversity required over the next twenty-five years has been seriously compromised. This in turn has lead to the blocking of a traditional road to the middle class which has been afforded in the past by one’s military service. The military’s spending of millions of dollars in bonuses and heavy, slick media advertising will not change a thing. We believe that while the military is currently in need of additional forces, that they are more than capable of providing for it and we wish to see developed a wide variety of civilian opportunities. This can lead to a satisfying and useful service with lifetime benefits for both the participant and our country.

Our target audience are primarily 17-25 year olds (though the age parameters could be adjusted upward), and the service can be performed upon high school graduation, after some college, or college graduation as long as the service is begun six months prior to the 25th birthday. Compensation would follow pay scales for military E 1 - 4, housing assistance and health care would also be included. After the existing all volunteer military is phased out funds for the National Service program will simply be reallocated within the federal budget.


At the onset of this proposal immediate and significant restrictions will be placed on military recruiting on our high school campuses that will eventually lead to a total ban of military recruiting in our secondary schools. Military recruiters provide very little to the core mission of our secondary schools. They are not qualified as career or college counselors, they are sales and marketing staff for the US Military tasked to meet a quota.

As the “No Child Left Behind” legislation is now up for re-authorization, the language in the act should be amended to restrict access to students by military recruiters. The act should allow for an “opt in” provision rather than the existing “opt out” provision. In the future, under this plan when a student expresses an interest in the military they will be provided with contact information for the local recruiting stations in their communities. Those interested in Officer Select programs will be provided public and private sector resources.

Students interested in civilian service options will receive information directly from their school counselor or career center coordinator. A direct link will be made between the student and existing school career and technical education staff. This will provide access to the next level (post secondary) and provide a conduit from these high school programs funded through the Federal Perkins Grant. This will provide “value added” from the expenditure of these tax dollars.

The implementation of this National Obligated Service program will not require the establishment of another federal bureaucracy. Rather, we propose to contract with private sector non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) already in operation; such as, City Year Enterprise, headquartered in Boston MA which has its origins in the Harvard Business School (late 1980’s). These private-public partnerships will speed the implementation of this program and result in cost efficiencies.

The Olympic Institute is pleased to add its voice to this important discussion on National Obligated Service. We do not claim singular authorship of this debate as we are a small private educational organization. However, we do believe that we have brought to the table an innovative and forward thinking model for consideration.

It seems appropriate at this time of year, as we celebrate the service of our military Veterans, Flag Day, Commencement/Commissioning day at our federal service academies and civilian graduation ceremonies in our high schools, colleges and universities that we recall the words written by George Bernard Shaw and echoed many times by Senator Robert F. Kennedy. “Some men see things as they are and ask why? I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?




Brian M. Douglass is the President and CEO of the Olympic Institute for Leadership Development located in Bend Oregon