Still troubled

I remain critical of the Army's recruiting program, even though the objective number of recruits is being met as of recent months. It's the fact that there has been a declining trend, pertaining to whether or not a recruit has a high school degree. Reports indicate that around 70% of recruits in the 2007 budget year had a degree when they joined. The Army's stated goal has been 90% and that has not been met in over three years. Looking ahead, the Army plans to grow in size by 74,000 in all components by 2010. The question is, what steps will the Army take along the way to either curb or reduce the falling trend in high school graduates being recruited, without further lowering standards. This is why I remain troubled.