71% of young people are ineligible for the military — and most careers, too

Kim Strong | York Daily Record

YORK, Pa. — The numbers are staggering: Seventy-one percent of young people are ineligible to join the military, according to 2017 Pentagon data. The reasons: obesity, no high school diploma or a criminal record.

The problem isn't just a military one, though: It's an issue for businesses as well because the vast majority of that age group isn't eligible for many jobs either, said retired Rear Admiral Thomas Wilson.

That's why Wilson recently raised the issue at a gathering of business and community leaders in York County, Pennsylvania. The 29 percent of 17- to 24-year-olds who are qualified become prime targets for all recruiting: military, college and jobs.

Wilson calls it “a war for the qualified.” Steve Doster, Pennsylvania State director of Military Readiness for Council for a Strong America, agrees it's a problem.

“This is a very real risk to our national security,” Doster said.

The solution could start in childhood

Brian Grimm has been fighting to improve the numbers for many years as executive director of the York Day Nursery.

"He was preaching to the choir with me," said Grimm, who heard Wilson speak at a recent York County Economic Alliance breakfast. "It's like you want to stand up and say: Is everybody listening?"

Early childhood education is Wilson's focus. He volunteers with Doster's organization, joining hundreds of other retired military from across the country, along with law enforcement leaders, ministers and athletes.

They're promoting a common message: Young people need preparation early in their lives to be productive members of society later.

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Grimm and the nursery have advocated for early childhood education for decades. York Day Nursery was a test site more than 10 years ago for Pre-K Counts, an education program for toddlers who will enter kindergarten the following year.

“Those first five years of life are where 90 percent of brain development occurs," Doster said

Pre-K Counts isn't day care: It's a curriculum-centered program that preps toddlers for kindergarten.

All children in York Day Nursery are in curriculum-based classrooms, even infants, Grimm said. The school has been invited to join a state-funded program for infants that prepares babies for the classroom as well.

"They know if they fund the infant program, that can get (the children) to the Pre-K Counts program, which will get them ready for school, which will prepare them for life," Grimm said.

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It's about more than the military

Yes, Wilson wants more young people to be eligible for the military, but more importantly, young people need to be prepared to lead businesses and government as well.

According to one report, 52 percent of employers in Pennsylvania find it challenging to hire people with adequate skills, training or education.

That comes from a Rand Company-sponsored report that shows wide gaps in student achievement because of race and socioeconomic factors in the state.

Investing in early childhood education isn't enough, Doster said: "The school (district) could lack opportunities and resources."

Pennsylvania has wide spending gaps between school districts. The City of Reading spends about $7,000 per child each year on education while the Upper Merion School District spends about $26,500 per student, Doster said.

"What are the opportunities that Reading students aren't getting?" he said. "Education is heavily dependent on the zip code that you live (in Pennsylvania)."

The gap between the wealthiest school districts' spending per student and the poorest school district is about 30 percent, Doster said. Nationally, the gap is about 15 percent, he added.

The early childhood solution “seemed a stretch” to Wilson until he read more and talked to more people.

“Then I became very interested in starting kids off the right way in their life – the right trajectory,” Wilson said. “The kid’s life becomes righted in so many ways by starting early.”