Warriors Wanted: The Performance of Immigrants in the US Army

2020 ◽  
pp. 019791832094981
Author(s):  
Eiko Strader ◽  
Jennifer Lundquist ◽  
Rodrigo Dominguez-Villegas

The US Army offers English-language instruction and socio-cultural training to foreign-born personnel, and current US law allows some immigrants to apply for expedited citizenship through military service. The US Army, thus, offers a compelling context in which to explore how such institutional factors might facilitate immigrant incorporation, yet we know little about the experience of foreign-born soldiers because most surveys exclude active-duty personnel. Using novel data obtained from the US Department of Defense that are not available to the public, this research note describes the integrative nature of the US Army, and contrasts foreign-born and native-born soldiers in relation to what we know about selectivity and immigrant job outcomes elsewhere. We examine rank, promotion likelihood, and retention of newly enlisted citizen and noncitizen immigrant soldiers compared to their native-born counterparts who joined the US Army between 2002 and 2009. We show that immigrants perform equally well or better than native-born soldiers.

2007 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 579-601 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Fry

In spite of the growing numbers and geographic dispersion of foreign-born children, the school outcomes of foreign-born teens improved during the 1990s. Analysis of Decennial Census data reveals that fewer immigrant youth dropped out of school and their English language proficiency improved. Some of the improvement is due to compositional change in the foreign-born teen population. Levels of parental education increased over the decade. Poverty among foreign-born adolescents declined. Other youth background characteristics did not change in a favorable direction. Multivariate analysis reveals that there was a large decline in the likelihood of immigrant teens dropping out of school above and beyond the demographic changes over the decade. For example, the likelihood that a Mexican-born teen educated in U.S. schools drops out of school declined by an estimated 43 percent over the 1990s. There is little evidence, however, that U.S. schools have improved in their English language instruction over the decade.


2015 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. e11-e17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda A. Valdiri ◽  
Virginia E. Andrews-Arce ◽  
Jason M. Seery

Since the late 1980s, the US Army has been deploying forward surgical teams to the most intense areas of conflict to care for personnel injured in combat. The forward surgical team is a 20-person medical team that is highly mobile, extremely agile, and has relatively little need of outside support to perform its surgical mission. In order to perform this mission, however, team training and trauma training are required. The large majority of these teams do not routinely train together to provide patient care, and that training currently takes place at the US Army Trauma Training Center (ATTC). The training staff of the ATTC is a specially selected 10-person team made up of active duty personnel from the Army Medical Department assigned to the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital Ryder Trauma Center in Miami, Florida. The ATTC team of instructors trains as many as 11 forward surgical teams in 2-week rotations per year so that the teams are ready to perform their mission in a deployed setting. Since the first forward surgical team was trained at the ATTC in January 2002, more than 112 forward surgical teams and other similar-sized Department of Defense forward resuscitative and surgical units have rotated through trauma training at the Ryder Trauma Center in preparation for deployment overseas.


2019 ◽  
Vol 184 (9-10) ◽  
pp. 431-439 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy M Benedict ◽  
Michael D Singleton ◽  
Arthur J Nitz ◽  
Tracie L Shing ◽  
Joseph R Kardouni

AbstractIntroductionCo-morbid post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and low back pain (LBP) are common reasons for increased disability in the Veteran communities. Medical discharge from the military represents a considerable financial cost to society. Little is currently known about the impact of LBP and PTSD as longitudinal risk factors for medical discharge from Active Duty military service.Materials and MethodsA retrospective analysis of US Army Active Duty Soldiers from 2002 to 2012 was performed to determine the risk for medical discharge. Four levels of exposure for were identified as independent variables: no chronic LBP or PTSD, chronic LBP only, PTSD only, and co-morbid PTSD present with chronic LBP. Statistical analysis utilized modified Poisson regression controlling for sex, age, rank, time in service, deployment, mental health, sleep disorders, alcohol use, tobacco use, obesity, and military occupation. This study was approved by a Department of Defense Institutional Review Board.ResultsAfter controlling for potential confounding variables, the RR for chronic LBP and PTSD independently was 3.65 (95% CI: 3.59–3.72) and 3.64 (95% CI: 3.53–3.75), respectively, and 5.17 (95% CI: 5.01–5.33) when both were present.ConclusionsThis is the first study to identify a history of both chronic LBP and PTSD as substantial risk factors for medical discharge from the US Army. PTSD and chronic LBP may mutually reinforce one another and deplete active coping strategies, making Soldiers less likely to be able to continue military service. Future research should target therapies for co-morbid PTSD and chronic LBP as these conditions contribute a substantial increase in risk of medical discharge from the US Army.


2014 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
SEAN HEUSTON

This essay explains the surprising set of circumstances surrounding perhaps the best-known quotation commonly attributed to Robert E. Lee (“Duty is the sublimest word in the English language”) and explains several significant things about the famous quotation and its broader significance: (1) Lee never said any such thing. (2) The famous line appears in a forged letter. (3) It is quite likely that a Union soldier forged the letter when the US Army occupied Lee's Arlington, Virginia estate during the American Civil War. (4) The phony quotation also shows up in an amazing range of sources, from academic books and scholarly journals, to Forbes magazine, to legal briefs and judicial decisions, to speeches by major political figures. (5) Although at one point early in the twentieth century it was fairly widely known that the letter was a forgery, the bogus quotation persists in widespread usage as something like a southern (and, perhaps surprisingly, a national) equivalent of George Washington's apocryphal “I cannot tell a lie.” (6) The long, strange career of this bogus quotation has larger implications for professional and general conversations about Lee, the Civil War, and American cultural memory.


Author(s):  
Asroji Asroji

This study was conducted based on the facts about the lack of maximal outcomes of learning English in almost all levels of education, especially in vocational school. Although English has been studied for many years, but the majority of students can not master English well, especially speaking. Many factors cause this phenomenon, and all parties should concern to work together to formulatebetter system and process of English learning at vocational school.The research was conducted at SMK Negeri 1 Pacitan, by taking the students of class XII as subjects research. The sample of this research consists of 94 students of Business Travel and Tourism,Network Computer Engineering, and Engineering Software classes. This research uses descriptive qualitative method. It is used to describe the students’ speaking competence, particularlyin presenting final task report. This research also identifies the internal and external functions to formulate a strategy to improve the students’s speaking competence. The results showed that based on the analysis of English speaking competency of SMK Negeri 1 Pacitan students, it can be concluded as follows: a). Based on the students absorption analysis of presenting final project report, shows that English competency level of students is in the category of “pretty”, with evidence of the studentsvalue average in presenting final project report is more than the passing grade value (7.50),it is 79.5. While the number of student, who passed the presentation test,is 66 students.So it can be obtained the percentage level of mastery learning students on the presentation test of final report is only 70.21%, and it is categorized “less”, because the percentage of students who passed this exam is still under 75%. b). While the analysis of the questionnaire can be scribed that the average overall score of 3.44 speaking competence components are categorized “pretty”, and it can be concluded that the level of competence of English speaking students generally categorized “enough”. Based on the level ofstudents’ English speaking competence , it can be formulated the strategies to increase its competence. They are: a). Maximizing the use of English as a language instruction and reducing the use of Indonesian, especially in the learning process, to improve English language competency, so that students can have the ability to explain the sequence of events and the students can pass the exam well. b). Having more English presentation activitiesin other topics to encourage the students’ bravery and self-confidence in speaking English, so that students have good Englishcompetence as preparation to getjobs or to continue their study at university.c). Having more exercise of using body language to improve the mastery of speech, and smooth attitude, so that students have good English competence,and they are able to compete in the global world in obtaining employment. d). And maximizing the use of school’s facilities by using various methods of learning, and focusing on the students’ center method to improve the studentsEnglish competency so that they are able to compete for educational scholarships in this country and abroad.


2020 ◽  
pp. 304-312

Background: Insult to the brain, whether from trauma or other etiologies, can have a devastating effect on an individual. Symptoms can be many and varied, depending on the location and extent of damage. This presentation can be a challenge to the optometrist charged with treating the sequelae of this event as multiple functional components of the visual system can be affected. Case Report: This paper describes the diagnosis and subsequent ophthalmic management of an acquired brain injury in a 22 year old male on active duty in the US Army. After developing acute neurological symptoms, the patient was diagnosed with a pilocytic astrocytoma of the cerebellum. Emergent neurosurgery to treat the neoplasm resulted in iatrogenic cranial nerve palsies and a hemispheric syndrome. Over the next 18 months, he was managed by a series of providers, including a strabismus surgeon, until presenting to our clinic. Lenses, prism, and in-office and out-of-office neurooptometric rehabilitation therapy were utilized to improve his functioning and make progress towards his goals. Conclusions: Pilocytic astrocytomas are the most common primary brain tumors, and the vast majority are benign with excellent surgical prognosis. Although the most common site is the cerebellum, the visual pathway is also frequently affected. If the eye or visual system is affected, optometrists have the ability to drastically improve quality of life with neuro-optometric rehabilitation.


Author(s):  
D.B. Izyumov ◽  
E.L. Kondratyuk

The article discusses issues related to the development and use of training means and facilities in order to improve the level of training of US Army personnel. An overview of the main simulators used in the US Armed Forces at present is given, and the prospects for the development of the United States in this area are presented.


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