Donate

  • +1-443-671-7111
  • admin@nnomy.org
  • Office: Tuesday and Thursday 10 am to 6pm
The National Network Opposing the Militarization of YouthThe National Network Opposing the Militarization of Youth
  • Home
  • Who are we?
    • National counter-recruitment network forming (2003)
    • Committee and Staff
    • NNOMY Office
    • Contact NNOMY
    • Register for full resources access
    • NNOMY Newsletter Archive & Subscription Form
    • NNOMY on Social Media Networks
      • Twitter Followers
    • Subscribe Counter-recrutment activists list
    • Donate to NNOMY
  • What is militarization?
    • How can we counter it?
    • Why does NNOMY matter?
    • The Militarization of U.S. Culture
    • School Militarization
      • By Policy
        • JAMRS
        • No Child Left Behind
      • By Program
        • ASVAB Testing
        • Delayed Entry Program
        • DOD STEM
        • JROTC
        • Mission: Readiness
        • Shooting Ranges
        • and Lead Contamination
        • Starbase DOD
  • Resources
    • Classroom Resources
      • Before You Enlist 2018
      • Documentaries/Films
      • Peace Pill Videos
      • Researching Pop Culture & Militarism - Selene Rivas
      • Video Reports
    • Considering Enlisting?
      • DEP: Just Don't Go
    • Counter-recruitment
      • 2018/9 Back-to-school-Counter-recruitment Kit
      • 2017 VFP Workshop
      • Equal Access
      • Guide to High School Leafleting
      • Opt Out/Student lists
      • Organizing Option 8
      • Recruiter Access
      • School Policies
      • Tabling Alternatives
      • Webinars
      • 2021 VFP TIR Working Group
    • Educating Activists
      • Glossary of Terms
      • NNOMY Reader
      • Pamphlets/Reports
      • Peace Activism
        • Careers in Peacemaking and Social Change
        • Cultural & Art Activism
        • Cultural & Art Activism / NYC
      • Recent Trends in Military Recruitment
      • Toolkits/guides
      • Webinars
        • Webinars: Countering Military Recruiting in Schools During the Pandemic
        • Workshop - Full Spectrum Counter-Recruitment
    • Downloads
      • NNOMY Bookshelf
    • NNOMY Blog
      • Pat Elder: Military Recruiting in the United States
      • Edward Hasbrouck: Registration Resistance
      • John Judge on Counter-recruitment
      • Article Archive
    • Peaceful Career Alternatives
    • SEARCH
      • Advanced site search
  • Groups & Actions
    • National Directory of Youth Demilitarization Groups
      • National Organizations
      • Regional Organizations
      • NNOMY Groups in Photos
    • Campaigns
      • Divest Your Body Campaign
      • Desinvierta su campaña del cuerpo
      • School Marksmanship Training
      • Winning The Peace
      • VFP/Counter-recruiting
      • Women's March on the Pentagon
        • War: A Women's Issue
        • La guerra: un asunto de mujeres
      • Campaign: A National Call
      • Education for Peace
        • My Education for Peace PDF
    • On Facebook
      • Stop Kids Going to War
      • De-militarizing Youth
      • Sergeant Solomon
      • The Counter-Recruitment Team
      • Demilitarize Our Schools Group
    • NNOMY 2018 Strategy Summit Report
    • Community Action
    • International Networking
    • Social media Outreach
      • Social media Campaign Resources
  • Login
    • Request a registered account
    • Forgot Login?
Recommend Print

Starbase DOD

DOD StarbaseIn 1993 DoD started a new program to make first contact with 10 year old Americans called Starbase. It's funded out of the recruitment funds. It takes 5th graders out of their schools and onto a military base where they learn some fun science along with the promotion of military careers. This first contact makes it easier for recruiters to approach our children in High School. Starbase naturally targets low income, minority schools. Don't be fooled, this is military recruitment and little more.

If we want our children to learn better ways of managing conflict we need to provide better examples than the US military. Our military is only used because we fail at everything else. Let's teach out children how to succeed so that we might one day have a future beyond war.

I examined representations from printed and electronic web materials offered by DoD (Department of Defense)* and Portland STARBASE, a “fun academy” conducted at a military base designed for “opening young people’s minds to the military” – specifically at risk 5 to18 year-old Portland Public School (PPS) students (K-12). I am struck by the fanciful rhetoric which, from my experiences as a veteran, former officer in the US Air Force and commander of a ranger-type unit in Viet Nam, and general observer of military life and activities, severely masks the realities on the ground. That STARBASE is represented in lofty terms, of course, is not surprising since its funding derives directly from the Pentagon’s recruiting budget, and is considered by military commanders as a “cornerstone” in the creation of their public image [DoD STARBASE 2008 Annual Report]. The U.S. Military Recruiting Handbook unapologetically declares that “School recruiting is critical to long-term recruiting success…It means having the Army perceived as a positive career choice as soon as young people begin to think about the future.” And as DoD admits, STARBASE “is one element in the building of that talent pool” [italics added for emphasis]. - Brian S. Willson

Source: http://www.brianwillson.com/dod-starbase-an-insidious-kid-recruitment-program/

Links:

  • Communities for Alternatives to Starbase Education (CASE) (archived)
  • Teach War No More - Milwaukee - Stop Starbase!
  • DOD STARBASE – An Insidious KID Recruitment Program
  • What is Peace? Say No to DoD Starbase
  • Vote No Petition on DoD Starbase program - Portland Public School Board (finished)
  • PPS Votes on Starbase, 10/17/11
  • PPS Board approves controversial STARBASE program. 10/24/11

Starbase Programs Nationally:

  • DOD STARBASE National Site
  • STARBASE Locator

Existing DoD Starbase Programs in the United States and territories as of 2020.
(Click on image to open interactive map)

 

Video:

  • Starbase Portland: The Big Picture - YouTube
    An overview of the Starbase program in Portland, a military pre-recruiting program targeting 9-11-year-olds, and the school board which keeps approving it.
  • Parents rally against 'Starbase' education for kids - KATUCommunities - YouTube
    NORTH PORTLAND, Ore. - A program called Starbase is coming under fire from parents who feel kids might be unfairly influenced.Outside Monday night's Portland School District meeting, held at the Portland school headquarters on 501 N. Dixon St., parents rallied against the program that takes

Articles on the Web:

  • DoD Starbase Militarizes Education for Disadvantaged Children in the USA - 11/26/2015
  • Critics of Starbase program gain traction - The Oregonian  - 4/ 20/2010
  • Inside Starbase Portland  - A School Program Sponsored by the Department of Defense Raises the Hackles of Local Activists - The Portland Mercury - 7/15/2010
  • Wacky Mommy vs. Starbase, or Why It’s Wrong for Portland Public Schools to Allow the U.S. Government to Do Military Recruitment on Any Students, But Especially 5-Year-Olds - Portland Public Schools Equity - 1/26/2010 (archived)

###

 Revised 02/25/2021

Share this

FacebookTwitterStumbleuponGoogle BookmarksRedditLinkedInRSS FeedPinterestInstagramSnapchat

Gonate time or money to demilitarize our public schools

Contact NNOMY

The National Network Opposing
the Militarization of youth (NNOMY)

San Diego Peace Campus
3850 Westgate Place
San Diego
California
92105
U.S.A. 

admin@nnomy.org 

+1-443-671-7111
Monday through Friday 10am till 5pm PST

Skype: nnomy.demilitarization

Search the NNOMY website

The National Network Opposing the Militarization of Youth (NNOMY) is supported by individual contributions and a grant by the Craigslist Charitable Fund - 2021 Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. NNOMY websites are hosted by The Electric Embers Coop.

Mobile Menu

  • Home
  • Who are we?
    • National counter-recruitment network forming (2003)
    • Committee and Staff
    • NNOMY Office
    • Contact NNOMY
    • Register for full resources access
    • NNOMY Newsletter Archive & Subscription Form
    • NNOMY on Social Media Networks
      • Twitter Followers
    • Subscribe Counter-recrutment activists list
    • Donate to NNOMY
  • What is militarization?
    • How can we counter it?
    • Why does NNOMY matter?
    • The Militarization of U.S. Culture
    • School Militarization
      • By Policy
        • JAMRS
        • No Child Left Behind
      • By Program
        • ASVAB Testing
        • Delayed Entry Program
        • DOD STEM
        • JROTC
        • Mission: Readiness
        • Shooting Ranges
        • and Lead Contamination
        • Starbase DOD
  • Resources
    • Classroom Resources
      • Before You Enlist 2018
      • Documentaries/Films
      • Peace Pill Videos
      • Researching Pop Culture & Militarism - Selene Rivas
      • Video Reports
    • Considering Enlisting?
      • DEP: Just Don't Go
    • Counter-recruitment
      • 2018/9 Back-to-school-Counter-recruitment Kit
      • 2017 VFP Workshop
      • Equal Access
      • Guide to High School Leafleting
      • Opt Out/Student lists
      • Organizing Option 8
      • Recruiter Access
      • School Policies
      • Tabling Alternatives
      • Webinars
      • 2021 VFP TIR Working Group
    • Educating Activists
      • Glossary of Terms
      • NNOMY Reader
      • Pamphlets/Reports
      • Peace Activism
        • Careers in Peacemaking and Social Change
        • Cultural & Art Activism
        • Cultural & Art Activism / NYC
      • Recent Trends in Military Recruitment
      • Toolkits/guides
      • Webinars
        • Webinars: Countering Military Recruiting in Schools During the Pandemic
        • Workshop - Full Spectrum Counter-Recruitment
    • Downloads
      • NNOMY Bookshelf
    • NNOMY Blog
      • Pat Elder: Military Recruiting in the United States
      • Edward Hasbrouck: Registration Resistance
      • John Judge on Counter-recruitment
      • Article Archive
    • Peaceful Career Alternatives
    • SEARCH
      • Advanced site search
  • Groups & Actions
    • National Directory of Youth Demilitarization Groups
      • National Organizations
      • Regional Organizations
      • NNOMY Groups in Photos
    • Campaigns
      • Divest Your Body Campaign
      • Desinvierta su campaña del cuerpo
      • School Marksmanship Training
      • Winning The Peace
      • VFP/Counter-recruiting
      • Women's March on the Pentagon
        • War: A Women's Issue
        • La guerra: un asunto de mujeres
      • Campaign: A National Call
      • Education for Peace
        • My Education for Peace PDF
    • On Facebook
      • Stop Kids Going to War
      • De-militarizing Youth
      • Sergeant Solomon
      • The Counter-Recruitment Team
      • Demilitarize Our Schools Group
    • NNOMY 2018 Strategy Summit Report
    • Community Action
    • International Networking
    • Social media Outreach
      • Social media Campaign Resources
  • Login
    • Request a registered account
    • Forgot Login?