We are pleased to present today's speaker rear Admiral Norman Johnson United States Navy retired who is currently vice president and dean of students at Boston University a position. He has held since 1989. In this position Admiral Johnson manages, the student affairs division of the nation's fourth largest independent University, which also has a second largest international student population of any school in the United States. Admiral Johnson received his Bachelor of Science in pharmacy from Northwest Northeastern University and His Master's in international Communications from American University. He has completed extensive postgraduate studies in mathematics and physics at the United States Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, and has been awarded an honorary doctorate from the College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina. His involvement with education is extensive. He has lectured Across the Nation and has participated in seminars on public broadcasting concerning Children at Risk in public education. He also initiated educational skill programs on various Navy ships and a navy base. He commanded during his Naval career. While serving a pentagon, he was a sponsor of graduate program in nuclear effects at the Naval Postgraduate School and assist in writing the curriculum for the school's operation research graduate program and tail titled operational Logistics. This program dealt with war plan Logistics and awarded the master of science degree. Early in his career. He developed initiated and implemented preparatory school program at the u.s. Naval Academy entitled boost which stands for broader operational bar opportunities for officer selection and training. This program is designed to increase the number of minority men and women eligible for baccalaureate programs at the Academy and it in ROTC universities and colleges Across the Nation this the program now at the US Naval training center in San Diego is a flagship for providing accession for minorities into the officer training programs. Admiral Johnson author the US Navy's minority recruiting guide in 1968 wall assigned as a special assistant to the chief of Naval Personnel the director Naval Recruiting and the secretary of the Navy for Manpower and Reserve Affairs. He also established a minority recruiting program for the Navy. The first two years of this assignment Admiral Johnson doubled the number of minority enlisted and officer Personnel in the Navy. Working closely with Personnel of the US Navy personnel research and development center San Diego, California. He shared in the creation and implementation of new initiatives for minority recruiting and in the development of new testing instruments, which substantially increased the excess of minorities to Technical Training while also reducing training school attrition and selective highly technical fields. Admiral Johnson served as a director of the US Navy's research and development program for undersea Warfare and nuclear energy development where he worked with the National Laboratories and specific universities engaged in Cooperative research to determine the training requirements for nuclear for naval officers to qualify for assignment at these research institutions. He served as Commander US Navy base Charleston, South Carolina Commander Navy Warfare command Charleston South Carolina director Navy Logistics planning and programming on the staff of the chief of Naval operations at the Pentagon. Commander Destroyer Squadron 35 Squadron of eight Destroyer type ship's Commanding Officer USS Jason a repair ship with a crew of over 1,000 men and women and Commanding Officer USS Dahlgren a guided missile destroyer. Admiral Johnson is currently promoting a collaborative program. He developed called first in peace an Innovative plan to link veterans displaced by military downsizing with at-risk use in the nation's inner cities. During his presentation today. He will outline this plan, which would provide transitional employment for many of the predicted 500,000 demobilized troops and officers as well as used closed military bases as training centers even homes for inner-city youth following his presentation questions will be addressed from the audience Jane boracic and Glory mcclenahan of Minnesota meeting will move among you to direct your questions to Admiral Johnson. You may use a slips of paper on your table to jot down questions for discussion. I'm now pleased to present Admiral Johnson. Thank you very much the real pleasure to be here and I feel very much at home with the United Way crowd in Charleston South Carolina was on the board of directors and I had the headed up the Federal sector which contributed nearly over two million dollars each year and knowing the grassroot organizations that were involved. I feel very honored to have the opportunity to speak to you today listening to mr. Wilson, Toby speak about Past it seems like so many years ago, and I really enjoyed that but I think what I'm doing today and my so-called retirement as my wife lost when I mention that is much more exciting and it's very stimulating for me personally. There is a brochure that I sent some in advance and brought some with me call First and peace a model today for securing tomorrow. That really goes into depth in the program. I'll touch on that a little bit, but I would like to tell you where we are today because you can pick up from that brochure and read about a lot of things. Well, as you know just have to pick up the newspaper and see how our country is the great disarray especially decay in the inner cities the problems we have in violence and with gangs and also the efforts that the president and the administration is putting in to get jobs. I have a statement made by the president last week April the 14th 1993. It was at a summer jobs conference in Washington DC and I quote from statement. One of the greatest challenges for this age for every Advanced nation. Everyone is to fully develop the capacities of all his people and then to find work for them to do. This is especially important for America for two reasons. One is we have a lot of folks here who are less. We move aggressively will not have the education and skills. We need to be competitive and productive in a nation like this. The second is even if we educate them and there are not jobs. They will be robbed of the fruits of their educational laborers people need to be able to work in this country unquote, but I like to take a quick look at who are these folks at the president of Kate's need jobs and need to be educated and need to be trained and first like talk about a youth We have many youth on our inner cities many without hope and if you look at the crime statistics in 1991 FBI report over 2,500 youth under 18 were charged with murder and 93 percent increase since 1986. And then the National Crime awareness study held by Northeastern University in 1992. It's a while numbers of adults murderers arrested with dropped and dropped the numbers that the number of them youth arrested for murder increased significantly with the largest group of 15 year old boys in 1992 and increase of two hundred and Seventeen percent. And then we have a gang problems and they're all over the country small towns large towns cities even have them here and these gangs are representative of the area's. They're pretty some of these kids are pretty sharp. They are entrepreneurs. They have a lot of things going for them. But they deal a lot of times and Enterprises such as crack cocaine and Senator Moynihan stated that crack cocaine is one of the nation's largest growth industries. In fact crack cocaine is making orphans just like diphtheria made orphans a century ago and he's even advocating having homes for Orphans in the cities because of the impact of crack cocaine breaking up the traditional families Etc. But there are a lot of gang members that aren't in trouble that are reachable. But they find their Association very helpful with gangs to help them get into the community and survive talk to them. A lot of them are very willing to get jobs because they know that there's a terminal that sometimes ends in death the latest results about five or six years if they're not shot the use the incarcerated and those that do make it and get out take a look back and a lot of them have changed so we have to do something about it. And I think we can do that by bringing them into the more conventional systems in our society, maybe our churches our community and our schools. There's one thing that is across the board with gangs. They need a safe house or a safe haven someplace to hide their drugs with their friggin all I think we can create that on our basis for those individuals. Now when you talk about gangs we have to talk about guns on coming on the plane over here. I was reading an article that said, you know, we have 250 million people in our country and we have over 200 million guns and another way in 1991. There were 8,000 50 people that suffered from gunshot wounds and they have over a hundred and fifty thousand gang members in LA and OD over 80% of them have received a gunshot room sometime or the other in 1981. Now those are startling statistics and when you spread that across the country because those same gang the Crips and the Bloods have sent the infrastructure all over the United States to work there crack business. Now we have to do something about it because all these years we've poured money into it. We put a lot of effort to it and it hasn't worked. We have to get this going another way we have to do it with education because in our inner city schools and this the in a city we have white black Hispanic Asian, it's across the board. But these youth are scoring lower on a national exams than kids in other parts of the country. And we have to improve our education. We have to improve the education of our teachers. The average SAT in America is 970 now SATs don't predict something all the time, but it's all that we have and the average set of individuals that going into education is 855 and I think yeah propitious use the veterans can do something about that another group of folks that he is talking about needing jobs are veterans. In the next couple of years, we'll have over 500,000 veterans come across and come onto this Economy based on the demise of the Soviet threat and just to change in the threat across the world. If we bet the latest cuts that President Clinton like to put in we're up to over 700,000. So you'll have three quarter of a million veterans skilled young people coming on this Society without jobs and I think we can do better than that. I think we could use them. Now the president what he's talked about getting jobs, you know, he's having trouble he has that block grant program for us. It was sixteen point three billion and then with some efforts from the Republican the Congress got cut the 12.6 and many of those block grants do not create jobs. Some of them do but the drawers for a short time but that notwithstanding that's a lot of money and we really don't have that and is it necessary? We have to do things. We have to support Yeltsin. We have to make sure that we have security overseas. We have to put money into these programs. But I think if we use what we have now our youth our bases and our veterans expeditiously at the same time, we may be able to get a peace dividend and have a very symbiotic effect. Now, let's look at the veterans over 500,000 a lot of them are young probably in the late 20s, they're well educated because the last 10 to 15 years 98% of our sessions were high school graduates. Some of them are like me the college educated paid for by the service. We have teachers in the and rotc's teachers in the service academies teachers in our technical schools. We have individuals that are carpenters Artisans nuclear power plant operators writers journalists person Elliman Electricians Aviation electronic types, we have the whole gamut. And there are also they said their teachers that can help our teachers take a look at the basis at the basis. We have acres and Acres of facilities. We have golf courses churches libraries maintenance shops that for landscaping Electrical Plumbing avionics about anything you can dream of some of them better equipped than our best technical schools. And we also have dormitories. We no longer have Barracks three and four high tier because of the all-volunteer force, we wouldn't attract anyone but we have Barracks that we call Barracks but they really are dormitories sometimes two or three rooms more cluster living on the apartment style. And those are enlisted bags. Then we have wonderful housing for officer enlisted all this. We'll go to waste as in some of the bases around the country. Now that we're down sighs those are all available. And you know, we paid for those we paid for those we paid for those veterans skills. And I think we can use them well, and then we have our adolescence the target group that I'm thinking of because we have a problem in this country The Break-Up a traditional family and we don't want to do that where it's working. It works. Well, it was you keep it that way. But we have even them state of Massachusetts alone over 12,000 adolescents children 13 to 18 that are in foster care and every day in Boston. We have over 548 13 to 18 year olds that are homeless and not going to school. Those are National Assets. We can do something with them we can use them. There's some statistics that I really scary for me that I ran across also in nineteen seventy six point seven percent of all children were orphaned or live without the appearance in 1990. The number is up nine point seven percent and we have many more kids than we had in 1970. So when people say well what would be the who would be the clients for this program? We have millions of them around the country as foster care is not meeting up to its needs a lot of times foster care is nothing but warehousing of the kids and I think we could expose them to better than that. So what first in peace really is I think an get it from your brochure is taking a base. It's close to the city. Have our adolescents aged 13 to 18 live on the air with the veterans and every day. The veterans will go to into the schools with the kids. So you don't have to worry about brick and mortar building new schools. The veterans will Mentor the kids go to school. They'll be teachers age. They'll provide security administration, whatever the principal needs administrative burden taken away from the teacher. The teacher will have more time to teach They will come back at night with the kids. Make sure they do the homework to do whatever chores and they'll stay with her momentum take them out to the different facilities on the base that they know well get involved in athletics show them a different type of Life some exposure on the weekends those veterans that are Artisans take them into the different shops and have the work side by side for a while to see what that's like and they can move around maybe someone as a gift the carpenter maybe as a gift electrician. Maybe it's a gifted person with computers know what how to read a spreadsheet just come like that some of those drug people surely be able to do that. They can catch the essence of management very very easily good exposure and then they go back to the schools. They go back to their Community whenever they can they get involved in the churches and other things bring them back make good citizens what people don't realize is unless they've been in the military is the bond and the family that we make I joined the Navy to beat the draft to be honest, and I went in and listed I went to boot camp. I was really amazed in boot camp how quickly We bonded with one another because we needed one another. I'm also a combat veteran in Vietnam. I had a tour there when you get towards you I let me tell you you felt very good about if ever you have read a book about the yacht ring Valley. We didn't leave any wound on the battlefield or anything. You knew you were coming home somehow and that's why we work so hard and you trusted your friends and there was a certain ethos and mores that was given to you when it was not spoken of it. Just you agree with it. You just lift it you would not in any way raise your hand raise your voice to one of your friends that was left for outside. And you even you didn't do it outside on a base if you're headed for parking spot. No one's going to drive in there in front of you because you know, and that's something very simple happens and parking place level. The military doesn't happen people open door for you and all we are a family. It's a bonding. It's something that I believe from my experience in the Navy all these years that veterans living with this young people. Can bring across they can make a move. That way gangs are not now. One of the things comes up all the time. How do you pay for it? Well, there's money out there. If you take the foster care and you change the foster-care venue from the Foster Care Homes the bases with the veterans you pay the veterans. It doesn't cost as much the ratio is less plus you have facilities. They're already there on the base. The that's the McKinney Act homeless act pays for the homeless and the family support act in 1988 pays for any child that you have. There's of a single parent with a single parent picks up a skill that will pay for the for the child to go there. So there's money is there and then President Clinton as put money out in the National summer service demonstration program $20,000,000 his reinvestment and converge and initiatives is 20 billion for five years and he kicked 375 billion 1993 and that's the convert the basis and to train some of the individuals and these last three items were mentioned by President Clinton last week on 12 April at his first technology investment project conference in New York City because I do follow that I think we have to use that as that the money's in Southie efficaciously and try to cut down the tail 22 By having to go directly to some of these projects and in the military pretty well. You see that even though a lot of you don't believe that but we we believe we are just stewards of the dollars. And then what is key is the private sector they have to play a role. I got into the education business as you heard way back when because I'm a product of good education. I believe that I made it to where I am today because I took advantage of everything that was out there. This is America and if you see it and you grab it and you run with it, you can get somewhere and that's why I've always been an advocate of Education all the ships. I commanded. I've worked very hard that way and I believed when I looked at the kids that were out there they are bright. They do some very bright things. They just need an opportunity. And basically they need a job and I'll get into that now quickly to support for the effort talk about needing a job. We have tied in with this organization to help us is the executive transitions Incorporated. It's the organization a company in Washington DC this headed by a Boston University Alum who gave me a call and asked how he could help he places excellent Executives and he also places NFL football players that are leaving the service and he volunteered to work with me so that he could provide mentors of the football players for these Youth and then as we talked a little deeper I found out that he had an agreement with the National Guard a 20 million dollar memorandum of understanding with the National Guard with trained individuals for certain jobs and Industry young people. For example, Jiffy Lube Jiffy Lube may need 200 kids a year for their places around the country. He will sign up these kids sent to the motor pool in the National Guard and you can do this because the National Guard and the Posse Comitatus you can give money. A key to them without going to the defense budget whatsoever and they train those kids and they go out when he found that I was affiliated with business Executives for National Security Ben's an organization of fifteen hundred CEOs. He said that would be a natural marriage and that way we could just about guarantee anyone coming out of her rest in peace would have a job because of all the programs you have in the country if the young people don't see a job coming out of it. It's really not useful at all. It just hasn't worked there have to be jobs on the end and that can be provided. That's one of the supporters along with business. Thanks Ignacio impurity. Also, I have veteran organizations one right in Boston, Massachusetts, which I'm a member of the board. I joined the board of these organizations of I think they can help this project along and the president was one of 40 veterans that was invited to Little Rock in December on the 23rd for Roundtable with the transition committee. He took this idea first in peace with him. They voted on it all 40 veterans prove was unanimous. And when I saw the January 6 executive summary of the meeting first in peace concept was approved and sent forward to Clinton and Gore as one of the projects that they should put into being in the during the first term. Also have Boston University now Boston University has taken over the Chelsea School System. Chelsea is a suburb of the city of Boston who had the largest drop out rate the children scored the lowest and the all the Statewide and National exams and Boston University at the request of the city took the system over to show that you could have it a system with outstanding results for the dollars that were spent there. And as a result of the program's going into his fourth year, we have reduced violence increased the number of kids going to school decrease the dropout rate and we've had a couple of winners in some of the science courses the and so we have some expertise there and they are joining in to work with these young people of do some training. I also have the center for Naval analyses. It's a washington-based think tank. That's funded by the Navy is a Navy line budget and the president is a gentleman named Bob Murray used to be one of the assistant Secretary of the Navy years ago and was last job was a head of the of the executive training program management program six months. Us at Harvard University he is now the president of the CNA I had lunch with him it with some of his analyst and I guess I argued well because they gave me three analyst on the spot spot to support me and I later went up to 10 analyst for two months at the cost of a half a million dollars and what they did was looked at over 80 programs across the country of types like this to make sure that the concept was sound one of the fears that I talked about. This is that this is not the end all and be all is unique for one area, but the concept can be used anywhere but I was afraid that with other programs out and throughout the nation that might have been better than mine or I could learn from or they could learn from mine. There were many different islands of success and we wanted to catalog them so that someone was interested in this could get hold of us and we could put them with CNA and they could pick and choose and say what was efficacious for them save a lot of money that way because that's the big thing. We have to Harbor we have to really husband the meager resources that we have. Also another group that supports me is the call the Churches United Global Mission and this was really a fluke. This is a group of church members from across the nation that are affiliated with the Robert. Dr. Robert schuller's Hour of Power of the Crystal Cathedral. He is a member of the board one of the trustees of Boston University who was used to work with President Nixon one of his advisors name Bob Brown. Was in member ex officio of a group of these gentlemen achieve that went to Russia to look at Family Farms. The Russians gave them a hundred thousand acres to help set up Family Farms. The chairman of that group was the founder and CEO of Land O'Lakes, which is a co-op while they were traveling through Russia. He mentioned the program that I was working on it be you that had segment for reducing violence in the inner city by having the children deal with youth they called me and said they were interested. I had lunch with them. Then I went out to Crystal Cathedral and spoke to their board the aboard made a unanimous vote to support me and dr. Shula gave me the opportunity to be on television and it was aired on 7 February. 93 I so far we've received over 2,000 letters. I didn't ask for money, but I got enough money to print this brochure that that you see and I had some there were no derogatory letters. I had letters from social workers Educators from Business Leaders foundations and a lot of volunteers that you didn't ask for money. But if you need it, we're willing to do it because we don't think the federal government should bear this burden alone with all that. I felt very good that the concept was sound and the next thing I started working on with my group was the workout a planning Grant. It really never got to that stage because I think it was on the 16th of March. I got a call from the White House and it was the secretary for national service and I went down and just add a quick. Hello with a mr. Eli Segal who heads it up. It was a good friend of President Clinton's then I went into a meeting with his Deputy to other people from the service gentleman from JCS two representatives from the Senators that approval wanted Senator was representative representative Veteran's Administrations to people from Ben's I brought the chief of staff of the National Guard in Massachusetts with me and there were 12 of us and I was asked to present the first and peace concept and I did and they it was very persuasive and they said well, what we're looking for is a summer demonstration program where you will take in a city youth And train them and give them educational component, but have them work. For community service, but it said yours is very persuasive because you're using Veterans as mentors and Cadre rather than others and you're also using the basis. So that's a terrific savings. So we worked out a program that would have the students get I think it was a hundred and fifty hours total training and education 90 in class and 60 out in apprenticeship programs. And also the veterans would get 75 hours of class time. They would get using spreadsheets computers or they would get people coming in from Boston University tell about setting up small business and other things they would need career planning resume writing Etc. And then they would go out with the kids and help them with the vocational training the they like that very much. And the last time I visit them they said well now we would like you to give us some specific examples of what your community service would be another board. I joined because I saw it had a very edge good education component was the Border. Estes of the USS Constitution the ship that's in Boston. It's going through Dry Dock right now and it won't come out until 1996. But I joined because two years ago Ellen craft who was the president of that organization went into the inner city and some of the outlaying schools and picked up. I think it was ten young people and had Artisans work with them to show them how to work on the hull of a wooden ship. And right now there's a hundred percent employment. Those kids are employed and they're working on the US Constitution on some of the artifacts and they're working their assiduously and they getting paid for it. They have jobs. That's the kind of apprenticeship that I dealt with also apprenticeships and the African meeting house because they have curatorial needs a oh, they're willing to work these kids this program a hundred veterans 2500 youth 25 veterans with a stipend of fifteen hundred and twenty two dollars to the veterans a hundred percent of the poverty line for a family of three and also the kids will get a $500 stipend the cost of this. Graham was 492 thousand dollars. As I flew out to I came here from Arizona as I flew out there. I stopped in Washington and I call my office then. I got a callback and the White House said they really couldn't do that because for one they were concerned their lawyers that it would be sole source to Boston University didn't have time to get it out to bid. Well being in the bureaucracy. I know if you really want to do something but I was told not to worry about my office and I knew better than that because several foundations that come up they said their Foundation money is expended but they working with me to identify prospects for private funding and I have one gentleman meeting with the 8th of May that was sent to me by a foundation that feels that this is a very appealing thing. So what our efforts are now to go ahead and put this program to being in the summer up at Fort Devens with these hundred children and the veterans to show that there is a this these are credit course some of the course who can give a credit courses and that their jobs coming out at the end because as I said before we can provide the jobs, I also got one of the letters from an organization the Midwest That find scholarship monies and they said that they are willing to find scholarship money that anyone who graduates from this first and peace program. So I want to let you know that first in peace is Alive and Well, despite the left of GI whatever you want to call it at the White House while they flail around because while something has to be done and something has to be done now and that's why I'm here this cannot wait. I think it's much too serious. We can't afford to let our cities go to waste we can't afford another LA and blessedly the people they realized that because only one-third of the buildings have been repaired their the committee by the way, the committee that is supporting me from the Churches United global missions. I am purely a political and a religious anything. I just take help where I can get it. He is a gentleman Reverend. Dr. Isaiah Jones who has one of the churches in the inner cities that was where the gentleman was pulled out of the truck and he is working with me. So there is a network around the country to pull this off to you ever see it you'll recognize where it came from and where you Correct. I think right now I'd like to go on a questions and answers because you can read the brochure because I believe you must have some things that are very specific in nature that I haven't touched. Thank you Admiral Johnson. We have a first question here from Jane Seeley. Yes Admiral Johnson. How does this plan strengthen families and children is this not ignoring the problems that families have and assume that they're not a valuable part of a kid's life and isn't it? Maybe this whole thing about institutionalization again? No, it's not because I was very specific when I say we would not be breaking up families. We would be using kids that were in foster care and if we did have a family it was dysfunctional you and they were getting money the Family Support act we would be willing to take the child until a family got the strength to take the child back. That's the one thing that is a strength in this country is the Family itself, but I think other things have you know, I am latchkey I grew up latchkey, but they were enough things around the That supported me and I think we can make pseudo parents until we're ready to give the kids back because the kids were talking about 13:18. If you're in that foster care business, it's very hard to place. But I think we can place them with the veterans who are used to dealing with young people. So we're not breaking up families at all. That would be that was the first thing my wife said by the way. What are you doing? Thank you Admiral Johnson. We have a question now from Dan Christianson. And will Johnson in your analysis of similar or related programs? If you studied any of the Job Corps programs of Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty and even the ccc's before that for learnings or comparisons. I believe they did but the CCC before that was entirely different because the jobs they were doing we're really labor intensive. And right now we're in a different age where an age where it has to be we have to be able to keep our technological Edge and that was a difference but they did look at the program's. I don't know which ones but they're over 80, but I would be glad if you request I'll give you my card and I can tell you what's there, but I know they did but that was a difference that we notice right off this a different venue. It's a different age different educational base that's needed. A different age group you're talking we're talking about here through 18 to 18 year olds, one of the things that I found out now that you know a quick story of a nephew who was where number 50 it was aligned back and present of the team worked at Boston College when Doug Flutie through that Immaculate that he'll marry can pass and he left there and went down to Washington DC and was a guidance counselor and one of the child care centers in Maryland. And I was talking about this program to him and he said, you know when he went to that job. It was a brick building with 13 to 18 year olds, and they had to have three involved with police authorities. Then they will put in there to 18 and let out he said now same job he's called a corrections officer the instead of this the brick building and has two roles of concertina wire around it. And he said, you know if we had a program like this when these kids come in and 13 and 14 are reachable if we had somewhere to send them because three involved with the place in the inner city for any minority is nothing at all. I mean you could be the wrong place at the wrong time get the cop angry all of a sudden you're busted dragged off or you know, resisting arrest or whatever or just happened to be there. Three of those are minor theft doesn't make a criminal out of you. He said but why the time they get to be 17, it's all over you can't change them by the time they're 18. They are incorrigible they're coming back. So they just put them out. It said something like this to break that chain. We do not have in this country anything for good kids if Get in trouble the wonderful things for you. But once you're good, you're out of trouble you're trying to do your best. You can get process related by the gangs and all but is so do you have a problem everything descends in the world? Wanted to help you? I think we ought to you know, shoot ahead of the rabbit. Let's go ahead and do something up front. Thank you Admiral. And next question from Raven Mason. Hi first thing I'd like to say is that a lot of things you say sound good and everything but I think what they do is they take things out of context. I think that you mentioned gangs you mentioned drugs and all those things and and they are happening they are real but I think they're taken out of context of of an oppressive system and I think until we deal instead of dealing with the symptoms we need to deal with the problem and the problem is that is an impressive system and a racist sexist system. I think until we deal with those issues. We can have veterans come in and teach an inner city. But if those veterans aren't trained to do interpersonally with these kids deal with their issues, then you're just going to have someone who comes in from the suburbs of comes in from the bases and says, okay, we want to help you little oppressed kids or press families and that's not being real, right? I understand I hear what you're saying, but I think Like most people that haven't been in the service don't understand who the veterans are. The veterans are like myself they like you and maybe a couple of years old, but they come out of in a city. We have over 24% minorities blacks in the military and when you represent 12% of the population during the War years we had 42 percent many of them have been where you are there if like myself, I'm much older but you know, my kids my grandchildren my nephew's and niece's they're all there. They're coming out of the military. They understand they have the skills. That's why I said we should use them they have been where other people have been and they have the skills and they understand but they can tell you that there's something they are now the system is oppressive, but there are ways to work the system. I came in the Navy in 1956 and you have no understanding of what the neighbor was like in 1956. I'll let you think of what it is. Now in the history of the Navy there are 300 years there have been only 16 African-American Admirals. Okay. So that is the kind of system that I work in and still working, but you can beat it if you work at it and you have the skill to do it if you're educated and if you have the guidance in the leadership to do it and I'm saying that it's out there. We just have to give it a chance. But well, I really don't understand what you're saying, but it's dealing with it because when you're dealing with the primary issues when you are there sitting with veterans in Vivo right there and you're talking with them and they're telling you what you have to know on how to use it that's dealing with the issues. There is now this right now, but you know, you can sit and wait. Hope things get better, but something has to be done now. Thank you. We have a question now from Aura hoax Admiral Johnson what support have you sought from the smaller communities in regards to your project and also what can the communities do in supporting you on behalf of your project? Well, you know, I haven't been on the board of directors United Way. I usually look at the United Way organizations and I only select those that talk to that are certified. So I know what I'm dealing with Excuse me being away from mic. I have Grassroots support. I have gone out with a some of the congressmen and talk with the people in the area. And I remember I was out with Joe Kennedy and he was talking about an issue of violence and I happen to mention what I was doing after the meeting was over. They all came over me ask for my God because at least it seemed like I had something to do with it. I depend very greatly on groups like Alianza hispanica. The Cambodian groups, especially around the Chelsea every that's why I say we have the expertise that is the area that has quite a few occasions. It's one of the things Is when you are poor and your disenfranchised your everyone and those are the groups that I try to reach so I do I stay in touch. I'm also on the board of the YMCA because I think that's an organization that does help because they have the gyms and the YMCA in the district that I represent 65 percent of the kids in the Boston public schools, which is nearly 90 percent minority are in that area. So I am in touch you could not do this program or even think about it unless you had Grassroots support and what you can do is write your Congressman right your Senator tell them don't write but why try the present your luck and get an answer I can attest to that at least not now and tell them that you know, you like to do something and have them get in contact with Boston University and or business is actually for National Security why I say that I didn't mean to say it disparagingly, but it's really truthful at the Chillicothe Ohio speech President Clinton said if anyone has any ideas on how to solve the problems in the inner city violence, please let me know same speech about 10. Is lady said if anyone knows how to do something and make something useful out of the bases. Let me know. Well Amelia got my pen in hand and I wrote and that was when he gave the speech. I haven't heard anything yet. I wrote Jesse Brown who was the commission of a veteran affairs? And I said, I would like to use as collateral the fact that I am a 30-year veteran of the military combat decorated a hundred percent disabled service related from the inner city vice president of a major university. I would like to use that as collateral to have five minutes with you nothing. I the letter that that I received about the first in peace being approved by the round table and the transition team members in Little Rock. I took the letter and I sent it to a gentleman named from who is the domestic relations person. I wrote him saying you know, this is the case. This is in January. What are we doing about it? No word. I like to say something else about the letter to President Clinton. I also included a copy of a fax where I was requested by. Mr. Dance. Akula and Little Rock Arkansas to be one of the animals are General support President Clinton that I did. I signed it send it back. I even closed out the letter. I figure that would have some sway but today nothing but I'm not giving up because I think is too important to go ahead and use that. I'll write again. I'll keep on writing but I would ask you to write. And try to get something off he has his problems and his hands are full. But so I think we have to help him the best we can thank you Admiral Johnson, you're listening to Admiral Norman Johnson vice president and dean of students from Boston University and architect of the program called first in peace speaking to the Minnesota meeting on the station's of Minnesota Public Radio. The next question here from Randall Jefferson. Yeah, I just like to say that I think your program is a good program and everything but you're talking age group 13 to 18. Our children are a lot tougher at eight nine. We got to start a lot earlier in the 1318. That's true. I agree with you. But the one thing you can kill a program is to put so many bells and whistles on it. That'll sink of its own weight. So you have to do something that is really a doable do that is has some funding from other areas to make it work and then hope for the best you have the kids have things such as Head Start and some other programs most of the cities that I deal with have something for kids that age but the age group I'm dealing with us nothing but you're right on the Mark we have to do everything. But God's gang members stopped my children that 10 years old and I'm aware of that but it's just one of the restrictions when you design a program, you can't do everything and if you do this just so much there that you can't swallow it, you know, elephant bite at a time longest walk one step that sort of thing. I think that's where you have to you have to do. You're right. I agree with you can argue against that point Thank you. Our next question is from George Pillsbury Admiral. It seems you have a great idea. But why don't you extend it to include the industrial complex the defense Industries and you and I talked earlier about Groton Connecticut where General Dynamics has a plant but in California area Hughes is moving out now to Arizona, so you have a big facility there that's going begging and it would seem to me that we would be better off taking the money that we're saving a building that extra submarine and pay the people in Groton not to build a submarine make something for That's useful to our peacetime economy. And whether doesn't apply to submarines been made it army tanks or aeroplanes your concept of sound. I one of the things that I didn't talk about. It's a number of Defense workers that are leaving because of the drawdown the defense industry. And when you think of that a lot of the people that will be leaving the people are lowest strata and very often they are minorities who are hired to make the equal affirmative affirmative action goals and they'll be out those folks Artisans. Also what you're saying is true. You can keep the plant even if it's size is down pay the workers to stay there and bring some of the people in 1318 year old to go ahead through Apprenticeship Training and see what's going on. That's one of our great shortfalls is the transition from high school to college for those individuals that don't go to college to have some skills that could we can use an industry and keep our technology level up Pennsylvania has a program called pyp, Pennsylvania youth apprenticeship program to try to make that transition the Germans have caught on and they're doing That extensively I don't see why we can do that and that's what I was trying to tie in with first in peace with those bases on the basis that have a shipyard or have a repair facility for aircraft have those workers stay and have those young people get around and see what's there may be, you know, we may have another right here. So it's very but you're right. I think that's a good use of the money is to keep them on the job at some stipend and train. Thank you Edwin Johnson and next question from Louis West. Thank you Admiral as a former foster parent of teenage kids. I hear you with great interest because I recognize the the lack there is of two-parent homes yet. I'm concerned because the view that I think most of us would have of the military is that you do a good very that they do a very good job of discipline and structure which are important. But what about the issue of forming relationships that they can observe within a household. I'm concerned about the idea of helping them to develop life skills and relationship skills that are very critical if they're going to be successful adults. Well, I think it was a PBS show about submarine force and they have the master chief of one of the submarine bases and he said every class that comes in he asked them to raise their hand and they do anything if they are from a broken home Etc foster care. And it's about 70 percent when people were being drafted and I was in the Navy at that time. We had a lot there I believe from what I saw at boot camp. It's better to get that skill later on. They're not to get it at all. And if you think of anywhere around the bases the people that are usually involved in the Little League the soccer teams Pop Warner football running the Cub Scouts the soldiers our Sailors our Airmen from around the base that are doing that in their time. The military has a propensity to draw individuals are not interested in making money because the pay is not that great but are interested in serving their country in whatever capacity and they get involved and I think those parenting skills can come along that line that may not get it earlier, but it's best to get it later then all at least it's available rather or not doing it. And I think if you have been exposed to the military and see how a young person will come to a ship and then you'll go away like I've been nine-month Cruise away from home and all and that becomes your family. And those ethos and things that are there translated and the friends that I made in the military my wife and I we kept forever. Thank you Admiral Johnson. We have a question now from Alan shalev. Ski Yes Admiral, I'm less optimistic than you with regards to the availability of jobs. After people come through this program. It seems as though we've got a problem now where there aren't jobs for people that have very high levels of training and it seems as though we're developing an economy where we're able to continue to produce product without people and when people are needed are companies seem to try and find them outside our borders and countries that have lower standards of living. So I'm wondering how you would expect some of these people that may be coming out of the defense department who in fact themselves would be having problems finding jobs in this current stagnant economy how they through training other people how you would expect these people. They trained to be able to find I expect the venomous not to stay with the program forever. And that's why I was saying a piece of what training is the get them trained themselves. We have a small Business Bureau in view in the Boston University that tells people how to Not a business. We would like to present that to the veterans to show them opportunities of other than doing that. We won want them to stay we expect them to do that for about two year period while they learn all the skills either through going to evening college or getting jobs elsewhere. But since 90% of our jobs are created by small businesses and startup businesses. That's one way to go teach them how to be opted for a nurse. That's how the gang survive it made I take them all but it sure better than doing nothing with him at all. We have to do something and one of the problems that we're going to have these some of these folks coming out is so skilled. They can replace others and those are those are other worries that we have but we just have to do the best we can but there are jobs around and if we can locate them through the business Executives and this exactly transition I want to go for that. It doesn't do everything but to me it does more than what we're doing now. Thank you Admiral a question from Alain Locke can yes Admiral? I want to go back to this idea of strengthening families because to me it's really crucial that that's a part of every program that we work and my question is why can't we just give more money to families? So that kids don't have to go out on the streets to sell drugs in order to help their families pay their light bills. It seems to me your program really ignores the whole issue of poverty and racism that was raised before I mean, it's been proven in studies that prisons cost more money than it would cost us to send every kid to college. Why isn't that a better way to go than taking kids once they've already been damaged and sending them off to to Camp so to speak well for one. You've got enough my program what I'm saying use monies that are already existing in the asset Sera be there when you start giving money to families who are taking money from elsewhere. The other thing some families don't know how to deal with funds and that's what we want to do when we give the kids life skills how to deal with Monies. We have tried pouring money's in before but that's an entirely different program. And this my idea is to use the assets that are already available son and monies that are already appropriated in foster care and other programs use what we have most efficaciously the basis of all to do something above and beyond is something entirely different doesn't fall in this way plus if the family if they have no families, they're already in foster care. You're not breaking up something that doesn't really exist. If the foster care is sound DSS would not want the youth to come there if it's unsound and there's not enough of it as we know where this is greatly in disarray of Massachusetts, then that is much better than what's there. So it's all order on a Continuum. I'm sorry. I can't answer your question positively because it's an entirely different program than what I'm advocating. We haven't time for two more questions one here from John Herman sum it up. Aren't you really trying to place people and control their Destiny and make them feel less like a victim. Yes. Exactly. I want them to see some options options on the bases options of Life, see how maybe they may see a you know, a horse that they could get on for the first time I get on a clue or hiking trail a library is just so much out there at the basis and we paid for those they are ours they belong to us and I think we should use them and I also want to expose them to some of the other skills, especially the veterans who have been where they were not very long ago, but actually made it through education or just by trying something different to get out and go into the service the possibility of the young kids now to get into the service just about no because the screen is so tight but that doesn't mean that we can't train them. We get them early enough and in also improve our school system. We can't afford the brick and mortar to build new schools. We can't afford. Train the teachers where they are but what we have now in the Chelsea School System, we have a training program for teachers in the Chelsea schools to help them improve if they needed to bring them up to other skills. So you're right. We are picking an opportunity for people to be in charge of their own destiny by showing them the options making it available to them if they want to take it fine, but at least it's often and it's a very small segment the young man is right and the other gentleman over there is right. It should be the whole Spectrum that's in trouble, but we just can't afford it. It has to be within our means. Thank you Admiral Johnson. We have one last question from Jarvis Jones. Yeah. I have one quick question. I like the general concept and be an optimist. Let's even assume your program works. My concern would be once we Get the kids to a place where they have certain skills. They won't be jobs out there. So what you may have done is raise the expectations, but they still remain unemployed. Are you you feel fairly optimistic that they will be able to receive employees talking with Executives transition the cooperated on the corporations that are involved. Yes. I really do feel that way. You have to be optimistic and the one thing that I like to say the program that I talked about here today is called first in peace, but that first in peace is an umbrella all of these the type of programs. We're talking about that Fallen to the use of veterans and bases and youth you don't have to have a base where they have a residential area could have a base close by that can't be a residence. Maybe it could be a National Guard Armory but something where you could get some trading and get some expertise so it doesn't have to be that but it's a concept of using what is existing now that will be free. That has value in the most efficacious man. I call that first in peace. So it will be unique for different areas in the country depend upon what support you have and how much money is in the cough is for foster care Family Support act and for McKinney Act.