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AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq – Most service members and civilians know about the many amenities aboard Al Asad Air Base, Iraq. There's a Marine Corps Exchange, several gyms, a swimming pool, shops run by Iraqi vendors and even a movie theater.
What many people don't notice, hidden behind the base theater, is a small building where those seeking improvement of the mind go to gain knowledge that will help them one day pick up their next rank, become an officer or get a better paying job once they've completed their time in the armed services.
The Freedom Education Center offers a wide range of civilian and military courses to choose from and will soon host classes from the University of Maryland taught by accredited military instructors.
"We provide education services for all personnel, both military and Department of Defense-affiliated civilians, aboard Al Asad," said Petty Officer 3rd Class Cameron Zbikowski, the center's assistant education services officer.
Among the services offered by the Freedom Education Center are no-cost College Level Entrance Program exams, which can earn students college credits from a nationally accredited school; bus driver courses; help with navigating tuition assistance and scholarship programs; and even proctored Marine Corps Institute courses.
"We process an average of 140 to 170 service members a month," said Zbikowski. "While maintaining and even expanding that figure, we're also looking to improve service by adding a reference library, which will include literature from all branches, military reading programs and college text books to help with research material."
The center is also looking to make the Plato Learning Program available to service members deployed to the Al Anbar province. Through a series of evaluations, the PLP helps determine at what level students should begin within their intended area of study and is a program utilized at military learning centers across the U.S.
To assist younger soldiers looking to refine their leadership qualities, the education center hosts a leadership course complete with live teleconference links to training centers in the United States.
"When the course first started we had roughly 11 soldiers attending," said Sgt. 1st Class Sheila Parrish, a member of the 371st Sustainment Brigade. "By the end of the course we had over 30 students attending classes regularly."
By the time the 371st celebrated their graduation from the course on March 9, they had gone from an initial test passing rate of 26 percent to 96 percent. In another notable sign of improvement and course effectiveness, the class started with only 15 percent of students passing exams with an A. And by the time of the ceremony, that number had risen to 55 percent.
"The learning center is able to put service members a step ahead in furthering their careers and education," said Petty Officer 1st Class Abra D. Kieffer, the education service officer for the Base Command Group aboard Al Asad. "We have people of all ranks looking to become officers, and we help to facilitate that and much more."
Together, Kieffer and Zbikowski are working hard to ensure that, even though they are in a deployed environment, the Marines, Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom aboard Al Asad have the means and resources to continue their education and improve themselves both militarily and personally.
| Date Taken: | 03.24.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 03.24.2009 06:38 |
| Story ID: | 31526 |
| Location: | AL ASAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 274 |
| Downloads: | 157 |
This work, Freedom Education Center: Providing life-long learning opportunities for service members in Iraq, by LCpl Jason Hernandez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
