College during the Vietnam War

[82Rigger]

Did any of ya'll go to college during the Vietnam War?
How did the war impact your opinions, beliefs, and philosophies as a student?

I attended two different junior colleges here in Florida from 1964-67 before I went into the Army.

At the two colleges I attended, the student body was pretty much a cross section of the general American population.

We had a percentage of the student body that liked to party a lot.
They weren't there very long. In college, if you don't maintain a 2.0 grade point average, then you don't get invited back the next semester.

Our classes generally met for one hour, two or three times a week. You had to spend about 3 or 4 hours of studying on your own for each hour you spent in class.
In class the profs answered questions about the last assignments and gave us our asignments for the next 6 to 8 hours of study. There was no time for discussion of Vietnam or protesting or any of that B.S.

We had a percentage of the student body that were against the war in Vietnam. Their problems with it were:

1. War sucks

2. Too many American boys (their friends and classmates) were being killed and maimed in Vietnam.

3. Too many civilians and children were being killed and maimed in Vietnam.

4. They were outraged that LBJ swore he wouldn't send American boys 8,000 miles to fight in that war, and he did it anyway.

None of our student body went to Canada.

About 45 students left college to join the service. One of my classmates left school, joined the Marines, and went to Vietnam.
He was awarded the Navy Cross. Posthumously.



So, having experienced both sides of the issue, and 35 years down the road, I guess my feelings today are:

1. War sucks

2. Too many American boys were killed and maimed in Vietnam

3. Too many civilians and children were killed and maimed in Vietnam

4. LBJ was an a**hole

Maybe ya'lls college experiences were different.

Airborne! Steve / 82Rigger

[Keith_Hixson]

Finished UP College after I got out. The War was still going on.

Attitudes in College usually reflect the general population. Not much talk about the war prior to 1966. After 1969 most people felt the war was a lost cause and wanted us to get. But, for the most part college was college. I was married and working full time and going to school parttime, followed the war but was more concerned about marriage, money, and grades.

Keith

[MORTARDUDE]

I attended Memphis State University from Sept 1966 to Feb 1969. The motivation for most of the male students seemed to be to keep from being drafted. This had a generally negative influence
on a lot of things that went on at college. Since we were in the middle of the country there wasn't any organized war protests to speak of, but there was racial tension ( Dr. King was killed here in 1968 ) By mid 1969 most of my friends from high school, even those that I had went to college with, had been drafted or joined the service and were overseas or had gotten out alrerady. At that point no one really knew where the Vietnam War was headed...I didn't really know what I wanted to do, as I graduated from high school when I was 17. I switched majors from engineering ( couldn't hack Calculus and Physics for Engineering.. made 4 D's ) to Education and got into the Air Force ROTC Advanced Program.... my heart wasn't really in that either. ( That is why I think some form of National Service, maybe a combination of community and military service, would be good for kids from 17 - 25. Only if its done right, but we all know the government's track record with things like that !! ) Anyway, when I got out, I went back to Memphis State for one semester. Didn't know what I wanted to do. I worked in a Sears warehouse for six monts and then started working for Uncle Sam , and then went to Draughon's Business School for awhile and took some computer and accounting courses ( sorter, collator, etc. and wiring boards ). I was working shift work at the time as a computer operator ( days, swings , mids change every 2 weeks ..did it for 15 years and was getting married..) so I put off my education until 1976 ( by age 27 I finally knew what I wanted to do .. LOL ) when I started going to State Technical Institute at Memphis and majored in Computer Programming and Accounting. I came close to graduating with a 2 year degree, but my VA benefits ran out in 1981 ( I should have started to school earlier..I never did understand why there was a 10 year limit on this.. ) and I didn't finish. There wasn't any real advantage in the type of work I did to finish college. As you know,most jobs and job promotions are because of who you know....

pardon my rambling...

Larry

[revwardoc]

Since I enlisted in the AF the day after high school graduation, I had to wait until I was discharged to attend college. I matriculated at Northeastern in January of '73 then promptly made the biggest mistake of my life...I met my now ex-wife, who felt that I didn't need to go to school anymore. At that point I unconsciously began a personal study to prove the theory that God did indeed give Man 2 brains (one in the head above his shoulders and one further down), only one of which works at any given time. A decade of intense research resulted in one becoming smarter than the other and I returned to school much to ex-wifey's dissapproval. Since dumping her and having regained enough intelligence to marry someone with a BS in Education and BA in Music, I am now in a position to get my own degree following this upcoming semester.

But, to get to the initial question; while stationed at Norton AFB, we had to put up with several protest demonstrations under the combined efforts of the students in the San Bernardino high schools and from San Bernardino Valley Community College (now UC-San Bernardino). They would gather outside the main gate waving the obligatory signs, chanting the obligatory slogans, and blocking incoming and outgoing vehicular traffic. That is, until the flightline fire trucks were called in with their high pressure water guns. They never had to use them but it seemed that their mere presence was intimidating enough to disperse the crowd.

I was once caught up in the blocked traffic and some of them approached me and offered to get me to Sweden (apparently we didn't have an extraditon treaty with them at the time). I told them that, when my name was called, I took that step forward, raised my right hand, and swore an oath to protect America from all enemies, foreign and domestic. They didn't seem to understand or appreciate my point of view so I reached down to their level and told them I didn't speak or wish to learn Swedish and to "F**K OFF!!" They finally got the message.

[Seascamp]

Due to high school co-op tech school and transferable USN acquired transferable units, I was accepted at UC Santa Barbara in the junior year upon discharge. I had one look at what was going on and all the campus dynamics, said to heck with it and got a job in oil exploration. Best decision I ever made as I learned to be a ?doodle bugger? (seismic exploration rig operator) a rough neck driller and live the life of a somewhat self-exiled ex pat.
I went back a few years later and finished up in a more favorable university environment but not in a California University, screw them. The thing that put me over the top with the original bailout was that Vets were given yellow colored IBM punch cards for class enrolment, and all others got buff colored. It is only due to my kind, mellow, well-adjusted and saintly behavior that that twerp- punk that gave the yellow card packet didn?t have to go see his proctologist to retrieve those yellow punch cards. Aarrgg!!!!!

Oh well, all is well that ends without a knock down drag out fight I suppose.

Scamp

[Andy]

After high school I did one semester, fall of ?66 at U. Mass. It wasn?t that bad, a few protesters but they struck me as out casts. However college was boring so I quit and joined the Army.

Fall of ?71 went back to the Zoo of Mass. They did not offer a degree in criminal justice so, except for core courses I took Psychology, Sociology, and History classes. Liberal Arts where the real wacko hung out. Many, many debates about the war in Southeast Asia. I was appalled by some of my professors and what little they actually knew about the conduct of the war. One actually told the class that it was standard operating procedure for the U.S. to napalm villages and towns to serve as an example to others. Many, most of the students talked about the War, according to Jane Fonda. Never let anyone know I was a vet until they started bad mouthing the troops.

?71 was very bad. They put cones up on the flag poles, like a cone on a ships mooring rope to prevent rats from getting into the boat. Several times the American flag was torn down, burned and an NVA flag was hoisted. A few times there was a group in class who would make a point of letting me know they did not like my being in Their class. My thought was, don?t give the bastards the satisfaction.

Besides, when I started as a cop in ?71 the gross pay was $125 per week. Taking two classes was like an additional two weeks pay. A few semesters I took 3 or 4 courses but with a wife, kid and full time job that was difficult.

It?s funny, by the time I decided to get a Masters degree in the early ?80s, Vietnam was ancient history, don?t recall it ever being mentioned.

Stay healthy,
Andy

[39mto39g]

Got out of the Army sep 3 1968, started college sept 9 1968. 6 years latter and 258 parties and no degree (but close) I started fire department.
All my friends in high school were dead by 1972 except 2. One was an engineer and the other was at hamberger hill with the 101.
I lived in a steel town,(northwestern steel and wire) not any protesting went on there.

Ron

[Seascamp]

Andy,

The genuine, official and USN anointed name for the cone you describe is ?Rat Guard?. And even more officially as ?Guard, Rat, white, painted, one each?, then a billion digit hex-decimal Federal stock number.

Scamp

[sn-e3]

Scamp they also work very good to keep drunk sailors from using the mooring ropes when they miss curfew on a ciderilla liberty. And like the Majority I went to college when I got back but only until my GI bennies stopped then so did I three credits shy of a degree but I make more then alot of my degreed buddys. and for what I do I don't need a degree.

[ArtySgt]

I came home from Vietnam and after a few jobs which last just weeks I joined the local Police Police force, about a year into that I started at John Tyler Community College. I got my two year degree and then joined the Virginia State Capital police, we had more of a problem with being Police Officers in School then with anit-war protesters. They then transfured over class'es to the Virginia State Police academy. End of problems untill we got back out on the streets.