- $1,000 per month to enlist before graduation
- Help pay for college
- $40,000 enlistment bonus
- Waiver for recruits who have an arrest record
Tenth-graders swarmed around recruiter Dwayne DeVane as he handed out American flags, water bottles, bumper stickers, key chains and the most sought-after treasures -- decks of cards bearing the U.S. Army logo.
It was career day at Corcoran High School in Syracuse.
While students paid scant attention to representatives of some big local employers, such as National Grid and Iroquois Nursing Home, the fatigue-wearing DeVane drew a steady crowd for two hours.
"When you go into the Army, do they really pay for your school?" asked 16-year-old Phylicia Coley.
"Your schooling will be covered," DeVane assured her.
The Army's pitch is resonating with young men and women in Upstate New York, even as the war in Iraq drags into its sixth year and becomes increasingly unpopular.