Deploying does not mean classroom is closed

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Cheryl L. Toner
  • 380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
Wearing desert battle dress uniforms and living in a tent city do not necessarily mean people need to put their educational goals on hold, said the chief of the learning resource center at a forward-deployed location.

Tech. Sgt. James Norton Jr. recently arrived from the 480th Intelligence Wing at Langley Air Force Base, Va., where he is a unit training manager. As part of a three-person learning resource center staff, he stays busy helping people continue their personal goals.

The former center chief said he counseled about 500 people on their Community College of the Air Force degrees.

“There is no reason why someone coming here can’t take classes if their university has online classes,” said Tech. Sgt. Bryan Hinton who is deployed from the 55th Maintenance Operations Squadron at Offutt AFB, Neb.

Obviously, the mission comes first and supervisors need to be informed, but in most cases, Airmen should be able to pursue continuing military-related and civilian education.

“This is what I love to do,” said Staff Sgt. Steven Spinola, a librarian at the center who is deployed from Minot AFB, N.D., where he is the operations director at the base fitness center. Here, however, his job is a little quieter. “This gives me an opportunity to feel a different pace,” he said.

The learning center offers computers for school-related work when testing is not in progress.

Being able to provide so much to deployed Airmen, whether for military-related or personal goals “gives us purpose,” Sergeant Norton said.