Princeton U. Welcomes Back Navy ROTC For First Time Since Vietnam War (NEWARK STAR-LEDGER 15 APR 14) ... Kelly Heyboer PRINCETON – It was 1971. Richard Nixon was president and Vietnam War protesters were a common sight on college campuses. At Princeton University, the Navy ROTC program was on its last legs. Like many elite universities, Princeton was no longer welcoming to a program designed to train students to join the military. After more than 25 years, the Navy ROTC left the Ivy League campus. Today, Princeton welcomed the Navy back. U.S. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus joined the presidents of Princeton and Rutgers University at a ceremony marking the return of Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps – or NROTC – to Princeton. Starting in the fall, Princeton will partner with Rutgers to offer the program. “For too long we did not have a naval presence at some of our nation’s great universities,” Mabus said. “So many of our nation’s leaders come out of universities like this ... that’s why this agreement here today is so meaningful.” Princeton students will be eligible for four-year NROTC scholarships and have an opportunity to earn Navy or Marine Corps commission after graduation. They will be trained by active duty Navy and Marine Corps instructors on the Rutgers and Princeton campuses. Princeton previously offered a NROTC program between 1945 and 1971. The university already has an Army ROTC program and offers an Air Force ROTC program through a separate partnership with Rutgers. Mabus and the Princeton and Rutgers presidents signed the new NROTC agreement in an ornate hall in Chancellor Green on campus. The event was attended by university officials and Princeton alumni who had been part of the NROTC program before it left campus in the 1970s. “Many Princeton alumni have told us that their time in NROTC was a life-changing experience and our university community has expressed strong support for the revival of this program,” said Eisgruber, Princeton’s president. “I am so pleased that a new generation of students will have an opportunity to benefit.” In 2011, President Barack Obama called on colleges to end Vietnam War-era bans and welcome ROTC programs and military recruiters back to their campuses. Many schools were prompted to change their policies after the federal government lifted the dont ask, dont tell policy that barred openly gay people from military service. Last fall, Columbia University welcomed the NROTC back to its New York City campus. In 2012, Harvard University announced it would open an Army ROTC office. At Princeton, Eisgruber said the university was happy to see the end of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. But it had not kept Princeton from allowing the long-standing Army ROTC to remain on campus. There are currently NROTC programs at 160 colleges and universities, including many that have “cross-town agreements” to share programs. Rutgers started its NROTC program two years ago and has about 230 students participating in NROTC, Army ROTC and similar programs, said Barchi, Rutgers’ president. Under the new agreement, Princeton NROTC students will travel to Rutgers to take classes and attend leadership lessons and drills. “Believe me, they will be welcome,” said Barchi, whose father and brother were in the Navy. Princeton students will be eligible for four-year NROTC scholarships that cover tuition, fees and books. Students must pay their own room and board fees. There are also two- and three-year scholarships available. At Princeton, undergraduate tuition and fees will be nearly $42,000 this fall, though most students receive financial aid. University officials said they know of two students – both women – who have been accepted at Princeton and were awarded full NROTC scholarships. The students have not decided if they plan to attend the Ivy League school, another university or the Naval Academy. “We’re working on them hard,” said Philip Roos, professor of naval science and commanding officer of the NROTC unit at Princeton and Rutgers.
Posted on: Wed, 16 Apr 2014 11:43:36 +0000
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