Harvard signs ROTC agreement

Harvard Signs Agreement to Officially Recognize Naval ROTC

Agreement ends decades long standoff with the armed forces and the University

By Tara W. Merrigan and Zoe A. Y. Weinberg, CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

Published: Friday, March 04, 2011

Ending a 40 year standoff between Harvard and the military that began with the Vietnam War and culminating in the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” University President Drew G. Faust signed an agreement Friday with Navy Secretary Ray E. Mabus formally recognizing the Naval Reserve Officers’ Training Corps on Harvard’s campus.

“Our renewed relationship affirms the vital role that the members of the armed forces play in serving the nation and securing our freedoms,” Faust said at the signing ceremony today.

The agreement to recognize NROTC—which comes on the heels of Congress’ December repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the military policy which banned gays and lesbians from openly serving the military—will go into effect when the policy’s repeal is implemented later this year. The University previously did not recognize ROTC because it said that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” violated its non-discrimination policy.

Speaking before a bank of television cameras and around two dozens Navy sailors and Marines in dress uniform, Faust said that she had “looked forward to this day with anticipation and pride.”...

Read more at The Crimson here.