U.S. Marines Make NHTI Part of Educational Pathway
Partnership with NHTI helps Marines accelerate education goals For Immediate ReleaseAugust 5, 2009
Contact: Alan Blake, 271-8904
Studying at Quantico for credits at NHTI is Staff Sergeant Benoit Hamel, who will be majoring in History at Virginia Tech.
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QUANTICO, VA - They are, as the motto says, “The few. The proud.” And increasingly, the U.S. Marine Corps are also “The college educated,” at least for those participating in a unique partnership with NHTI, Concord's Community College.
For seven years, the USMC and NHTI in Concord have partnered in a unique academic initiative that helps aspiring Marine Corps officers accelerate their college careers. The 2009 class of the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program (MECEP) summer Preparatory School at the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Va., includes 108 of the USMC's top non-commissioned officers who were selected for a program that will eventually help them earn the coveted lieutenant bars.
Michael Moffett is a lieutenant colonel in the Marine Corps reserve and a professor at NHTI. He has served as an administrator and instructor at MECEP Prep since 2001 and helped create the link between a community college in New Hampshire and the Marine Corps' educational program.
“MECEP Marines are carefully screened before being accepted into this program,” said Moffett. “They all have great academic and leadership potential. But many of them have been away from the classroom for many years and need to transition back into a rigorous academic environment before pursuing baccalaureate studies.”
When not studying, students in the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program (MECEP) summer Preparatory School at Quantico continue their training regimen.
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MECEP has been around since 1974. But in 2003, with Moffett's help, NHTI came up with a way for the Marines to accelerate their educational attainment. Through courses approved by NHTI, Marines in the MECEP program earn college credits that can be applied to their baccalaureate degree. All MECEP Marines must have been accepted at top universities before reporting to the summer prep school.
The arrangement is a modified version of NHTI's Running Start program, a partnership that allows New Hampshire high school students to earn credits toward their diploma and college. In both the high school and Marine Corps versions of the program, local instructors are partnered with NHTI faculty, who consult on curriculum and leaning outcomes, and assure the integrity of the courses. College credits are awarded by NHTI, and can be transferred into many other colleges and universities across the country.
Numerous professors, administrators and legislators from New Hampshire have visited the school when it was in San Diego to confirm that the courses aligned with NHTI's in terms of contact hours, objectives, outcomes, syllabi and instructor qualifications. Dr. Anni McLaughlin, professor of English at NHTI, was the most recent visitor to the program.
“The professors were highly qualified” said Dr. McLaughlin. “Most were Lieutenant Colonels who possessed graduate or doctoral degrees, mainly in the fields they taught. They displayed an incredible breadth of knowledge, exhibited a confident and enthusiastic presence, were well-prepared, and were organized. I was particularly struck by the enthusiasm of the professors and how they clearly loved teaching and genuinely cared about their students.”
Students in the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program (MECEP) summer Preparatory School earn credits at NHTI that transfer to major colleges and universities.
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The partnership is a cost cutting measure for the USMC and a revenue generator for NHTI.
“The credit option saves the USMC millions of dollars in hours of uniformed duty, as many Marines earn enough credit in the summer to accelerate their college careers by a semester,” explained Moffett. “The credit option has also saved Marines millions of dollars in avoided G.I. Bill tuition expenses. For $600, a Marine can register for 12 credits and be in a full-time status for a summer session, as opposed to paying $20,000 for a semester at a university.”
Meanwhile, the program generates nearly $60,000 in tuition revenue annually without taking up classroom space at the Concord campus, which is overflowing its classroom capacity.
“It's a partnership that saves taxpayer dollars and generates revenue for the College,” says Lynn Kilchenstein, president at NHTI. “Most importantly, if provides a strong academic experience for Marines who are growing into important leadership role in the service and in our communities.”
The program was almost dropped when space at the San Diego base was needed for other missions. However, A Center for Naval Analyses survey indicated that 94% of former MECEPs believed the school was essential or important to their subsequent success as students. So space was made available at Quantico.
Of 108 students in the 2009 MECEP program, 98 are registered with NHTI to earn college credit. Classes included Composition, American Literature, College Algebra, Statistics, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, Chemistry, Physics, Western Civilization, Political Science, and US History. Those credits earned will be subsequently transferred with the NHTI imprimatur to top universities around the country. This year's students will attend Universities of San Diego, Maryland, Colorado, Michigan, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Florida, Washington, Arizona, Minnesota, Alabama, Utah, Idaho, Oregon State, UCLA, Illinois, among others.
NHTI's motto is “Start here, go anywhere.” In the case of its partnership with the Marines, NHTI's students literally go around the world.
NHTI, Concord's Community College, is a fully accredited, public community college serving students, businesses and the community by providing excellent academic, technical and professional education. NHTI offers over 60 academic programs to more than 4,500 students annually. NHTI is a member of the Community College System of New Hampshire.