In Israel today, national service is required of all citizens when they turn 18.  The majority of young Israelis serve in the military; boys serve for three years, girls for two years.  Some complete their service in civilian positions instead, and serve as volunteers.  The government provides those in service with food and lodgings on military bases if they serve on a base, or in shared apartments owned by the national service administration if they volunteer.  If they work close to home, they may live at home. They are provided with a small stipend, and may ride public transport for free if they present their national service cards.  A similar program would benefit the United States.

     The national service system has shaped Israeli culture.  Israelis share a strong sense of pride in their country because they have all served it.  They are aware of the problems facing their country because they have spent time trying to solve them.  Young Israelis are responsible, mature, and skilled because they have experience in jobs with high expectations early in their lives.

      There is no such service requirement in the United States.  Instead, young American teens are disparaged both at home and abroad for being undereducated, self-centered, and ignorant of problems facing their country and the world.  A New York Times article by Sam Dillon, published in 2008, reports that in a telephone survey of American teens, in which the teens were asked basic history- and literature-related questions, fewer than half were able to answer correctly, suggesting that many American teens do not possess even a basic knowledge of their own country’s accomplishments.1  The UK’s Guardian newspaper reported in 2009 on a survey of Boston teens regarding the beating of the pop star Rihanna by her boyfriend.  The survey found that half of the teens found Rihanna at fault for the beating, suggesting that the teens have no conception of the gravity and effects of the widespread problem of domestic violence.2  

      According to the US Census Bureau’s demographic estimates for 2008, there are about 21,000,000 17 to 22 year-olds living in the United States.  Though there are no definitive statistics on education and civic engagement levels, the New York Times and Guardian articles indicate that both are low.  Youth education and unemployment statistics3 do provide definitive indications of problems with this demographic, however.  In 1993, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 32% of 15 to 17 year-olds were in grades below the modal grade for their age and, in that year, the high school dropout rate was 4.2% - or approximately 382,000 people.4  An MSNBC article cites the college dropout rate in 1997 as 46%.5 Between 1996 and 1998, the unemployment rate for high school dropouts was 31.6%.6  The current financial crisis is likely to make both the education and employment problems worse by restricting school and university budgets, severely limiting available jobs, and worsening living conditions for Americans.

      A system of mandatory national service, similar to that in place in Israel today, may provide a solution to these problems.    

A requirement of service

            The United States National Service Requirement (USNSR) would require two years of service of all citizens from age 18.  The service requirement would mandate completion of a high school diploma or equivalent.  This educational requirement would minimize the high school dropout rate by effectively increasing the age at which young people may leave school to 18.  Those who require a longer time in which to graduate may defer service until the age of 24.  Those who are unable to meet the academic requirements to graduate high school may fill the requirement with training in a trade after the age of 16.  

Logistics for placement in service positions

            The service requirement may be met in several ways, according to the individual’s interests as well as the needs of the organization with which she is employed.  Unlike the Israeli model, the focus of the USNSR is on community service rather than military service.  However, individuals may choose between military service and volunteer service.  In both cases, food, lodging, and a small stipend (the amount would depend on financial need) would be provided for the individual, and she may have the option of continuing in her area of service beyond the required two years, with the prospect of promotion.  The individual is also placed into a group with whom she will live for her two years of service, though the group members may work on different projects.  Living with a group will provide the individual with a support network.  It will expose her to people from other places, cultures, backgrounds, and interests.  It will also teach her how to be part of a community and problem-solve and uphold responsibility within that community.  

            Applications will be required in order to place participants.  High school seniors will file their applications by the final day of the month before they turn 18.  Applications will include:

                + Family background.  This is necessary in order to estimate financial need and to create a balance in backgrounds of participants within each service group.
                + Personal background and experience.  This will again aid in group placement.  It will also aid in placement into service position
                + Areas of service interest.  These will be extensive and are outlined below (see section, ‘Filling needs’)

            Applications will go into a database through which placements will be sorted by type of position desired (volunteer/military).  If the person chooses military service, she will go through the current military induction process.  If she chooses to volunteer, she will be put into the system of the Corporation for National and Community Service, which is an existing independent federal agency. 7 The Corporation will then place the individual into her volunteer position.  The agency will be greatly expanded to accommodate the much larger number completing service tenures.   

Filling needs

            Participants will be placed only in communities that have expressed a need for volunteers.  The USNSR will work with the communities to create programs that fill their specific needs, and that are sensitive to their community.  However, need is anticipated to be great and varied.  This will provide extensive options for those applying.  Individuals may rank their preferences as to:

                + The location of their service.   Travel to and from work will be free of charge on public transportation.  Those who live away from home will receive a limited allowance for transportation to get home twice per year. If individuals choose military service, they will be placed according to military need.  If they choose volunteer work, they have three choices as to where they will live for two years.  Individuals may choose to:

                     1. Stay close to home.  In this case they will still be required to live in their group in order to uphold the values of the program.
                     2. Move to a different part of the country.
                     3. Volunteer abroad in approved programs

                + An individual who chooses to serve domestically will be under the supervision of Americorps or Learn and Serve America, which are run by the Corporation for National and Community Service.  They run a large number of programs that focus on a wide range of issues.  Individuals who choose to work domestically may, for example:
                      # Work with underprivileged preschoolers in HeadStart programs
                      # Organize environment-focused programs such as recycling systems in the participants’ communities
                      # Clean national parks
                      # Create and run after-school programs to keep middle- and high-school students off the streets
                      # Staff homeless shelters and soup kitchens
                      # Work in refugee-rehabilitation programs
                      # Volunteer in hospitals

                + Those who wish to volunteer abroad will go through a more extensive selection process to ensure they are truly capable and willing to work abroad.  If they are successful in the process, they will be under the supervision of the Peace Corps, through which they will be able to choose from a large number of countries and programs in which to volunteer.

Learning Values

            The USNSR is based on the belief that young Americans are not learning certain basic, non-faith-based values.  The program’s goal is to let participants learn these values for themselves.  The structure of the program will provide the tools for this learning process.  These values are:

                + Service.  Participants will learn the importance of helping others and giving back to their society.
                + Community.  The participants will learn about living in a community through their experience with the groups of volunteers with which they live.  They will also learn the value of civic engagement and participation in community through their experience
                + Equality. The program is designed so that all participants live on similar budgets and share the same living quarters.  They are, of course, free to spend their own money on extra expenses.  However, their basic living expenses will be similar, and therefore and equalizing factor.
                + Cultural understanding.  Participants will learn about each other’s life experiences through exposure to others from a wide variety of backgrounds.
                + National pride.  Personal investment into their communities and country will instill a sense of pride in what they have done for their society.

Concrete Benefits

            As well as the values that American youths will learn, more concrete projected benefits will include:

                + Job skills.  These will better prepare young Americans for the job market.  The training and experience they receive during their time in service will be especially important to those who do not plan to go to college after their service.  Their training will leave them better equipped to participate in the workforce and therefore less likely to become unemployed in the future.
                + The large bureaucracy created by the expansion of the Corporation for National and Community Service and creation of supervisor positions for volunteer locations will create jobs for adults.
                + The military will see service increase greatly, which will decrease the need for military recruitment programs.  
                + Communities’ needs that are not priorities for government, for example ‘green’ programs and after school activities for disadvantaged children, will be flooded with a large, cheap workforce.

The United States National Service Requirement provides a comprehensive plan that will engage and educate America’s youth.  It will teach them values and skills that many young Americans today lack.  It will also create jobs for adults, and guard against unemployment for those who have participated in the program.  It will change America for the better.