Fewer Grads Answer Uncle Sam's Call

By Julie Blair

Wichita, Kan.

Staff Sgt. Paul N. Jackson can offer the world to high school graduates who join the U.S. Army, but these days he rarely has takers.

Students are saying no to international travel, no to money for college, and no to the promise of a good job faster than a soldier can drop and do 50 push-ups. They usually aren't swayed by appeals to their sense of patriotism, and even the prospects of helicopter rides and cliff climbs can't pique much interest in military service.

"I make 35 calls an hour," said Sgt. Jackson, an affable infantryman turned recruiter who works out of an Army recruiting station here. "I get lucky if I...