Do you ever wonder - What do they really want?

"Never rely on Guidance Counselors as the sole COI [Centers of Influence] in the school. Cultivate coaches, librarians, administrative staff, and teachers, especially those whose subjects correlate with Army programs. By directing your efforts toward other faculty members you may be able to obtain the information necessary to effectively communicate with students.

"Remember, first to contact, first to contract...that doesn't just mean seniors or grads; it means having the Army perceived as a positive career choice as soon as young people begin to think about the future.If you wait until they're seniors, it's probably too late." [Emphasis added]
          -- United States Army Recruiting command, School Recruiting Program Handbook, Chapter 2, School Relations

Teachers:
We are up against a most sophisticated machine, whose representatives practice what they do on a daily basis, are paid for what they do, are trained as salesmen, and are always on duty. What they are selling is a myth about war and the armed services, and the relationship between the armed services and political leadership. They do not stand apart from government or politicians. They have never stood apart. Their budget for recruitment is $4 billion a year.* What chance do you or the children whom they seek have against them and the machine that they are part of?

There is no reason for recruiters to need to contact children through the schools. Families and children have the ability to be in touch with recruiters on their own and are subject to innumerable solicitations within the community and the larger culture. The only reason the recruiters work in the schools is because it is a friendly and familiar environment to children, where the children's parents are not there to provide guidance and protection, and where the recruiters utilize you to create an atmosphere of safety and familiarity by association. Their job is to recruit children into war, and nothing else.

Under the law, you, as a teacher, are not required or mandated to provide any information at all about any of your students or students you know in the school. Under the No Child Left Behind Act, the limited information that the military may be entitled to is to be passed on centrally through the school district's administration. Circumventing that process may leave you open to legal action by the child and his or her family. The family and the child are the holders of the privilege and are capable of passing on any information that they deem appropriate at any time.

The best strategy is to completely disengage and refuse participation, much the same way you would if you were pursued by a desperate car salesman.