Naval ROTC Returns to Harvard

The specter of the Vietnam War has receded from Harvard University.The Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps,expelled from campus beginning in 1969,has been reinstated by an agreement signed by Harvard President Drew Faust and Navy Secretary Ray Mabus.A director of Naval ROTC will be appointed;the university will resume funding the program;and the program will be given office space,as well as access to classrooms and athletic fields.
The Reserve Officer Training Corps provides scholarships to those who undergo military training while in school and agree to serve in the armed forces after they graduate.Harvard was one of the six original schools to support ROTC in 1926.During the Vietnam War,supporting the ROTC was equated with supporting the much-despised conflict in Southeast Asia.
Dr.Faust said she decided to reinstate ROTC when Congress voted to repeal the Pentagon's "don't ask,don't tell" policy on gays in the military in December 2010.She hailed the armed forces' vital role in securing our freedoms.Secretary Mabus said the reinstatement will benefit both the military and the nation,because with exposure comes understanding,and through understanding comes strength.
There are currently 10 Harvard students who have participated in Naval ROTC at another school.