"The military is going to benefit from studentscoming from an institution like Harvard, to make[changes] happen more effectively and moreefficiently," she said.

McDonald said the ROTC program was crucial inher choice to attend Harvard.

"If my scholarship is cut, I wouldn't be here,"McDonald said.

Koma B. Gandy '95 said that she, too struggledwith a difficult decision when considering whetherto come to Harvard on a Navy ROTC scholarship orto attend the U.S. Naval Academy.

Gandy, who also stressed that her views do notreflect those of her ROTC unit, said her decisionwas not based entirely on financialconsiderations. But she said Harvard's financialaid system forces families to make difficulteconomic choices when considering paying theirchildren's tuition bills.

In his closing remarks, Verba noted thatcommittee members who attended the forum had heardarguments that were new to them.

In an interview after the forum, Verba said thenew perspectives included "the nature of thefinancial pressure on students [and] some of theexamples of pressure on people who are in themilitary who are homosexual."

"It's going to help in our thinking about [theissues]," committee member James Engell said afterthe meeting.

Engell, who is professor of English andcomparative literature, said he was pleased thatthe forum participants were thoughtful and wererespectful of opposing viewpoints.

"This issue is not only an abstract issue,"Engell said. "It's an issue about people. So youneed to hear what people have to say.