Given the purpose of this book, we were very interested in the perspectives of non-ROTC students. In our survey of such students at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, we were able to obtain information about how non-military students’ interactions with ROTC – inside and outside of the classroom – had impacted them, and the nature of their basic perceptions of ROTC on campus. In general, the student respondents reported even more dynamic interactions and reactions than the cadets related, as the statements quoted in this chapter will indicate. We found this difference very interesting, for our assumption was that cadets would be more inclined to exaggerate positive effects than regular students. If such student reports are to be trusted (and there is no reason not to trust them), the presence of ROTC on this campus has had a meaningful impact on students, although it is not as strong or poignant as the ideal model of interaction would hope.

In addition to surveying numerous ROTC and civilian students concerning their interactions, we also report the responses of some students in two humanities courses that dealt with military and war themes. One course was a small seminar entitled “War and Romance,” which was taught in Integrated Liberal Studies and Political Science. The other was a lecture course entitled “Military History of the United States to 1902,” taught in the History Department. Although we received a low percentage of respondent returns for these courses, the responses that we received provide suggestive evidence of the thinking that such courses can inspire.