European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 16, 1973, Darmstadt, Hesse                              Education advisers attitudes differ by the special projects team the attitude of education advisers about commercial correspondence schools ranges from passive tolerance to fiery opposition. In talking with More than 35 education advisers assistants and Counselor stars and stripes reporters determined that Many advisers believe correspondence school salesmen and their servicemen customers Are staying Clear of Contact with local education offices. Many Are apparently afraid we will talk their customers out of buying one adviser explained. Salesmen Are not observing the 10-Day Cooling off period for contracts. Most servicemen sign away their right to a Cooling off period at the same time they enrol for the course. Servicemen often come to the education Center Only after they have had difficulty with a course and want to withdraw without paying the full amount agreed to in a contract. For every student who goes to the. Education Center to Check out a correspondence course before signing there Are one or two More who do not. That the courses Are overpriced and offer educational material of questionable value. Among those education advisers who have objections to correspondence school salesmen and their tactics the hostility is not veiled. Many Are like William Hodges Educa Tion adviser at Baum older who lumped salesmen together and noted i be got something against anybody who is trying to fleece the  Neureul adviser Jerry Malan said he was opposed to correspondence school salesmen. I be always had a big dislike of these salesmen Malan explained. They re professional leeches. They Are sucking the Money out of these Guys who Don t have it to spend. I be never liked  the reasons for opposition Are varied. One adviser Michael Biebrich of Heil Bronn said my opinion is that a com Mercial correspondence course is an in Cost effective Way of gaining an Educa  another opponent of commercial correspondence school courses is Freeman Holifield education adviser at Vogel Weh. As far As i am concerned Holifield said the commercial correspondence schools cannot offer these servicemen any thing useful that we can t offer Here for much less Money. In fact we can offer More including College  most advisers note that literature advertising correspondence schools is scattered in snack bars Day rooms Headquarters buildings and sometimes in the education Center. In some cases during past months the salesmen were permitted to put their reply cards on education office bulletin boards. How Ever no one admitted the practice now existed. The servicemen can pick up the literature anywhere said Karlsruhe adviser Ellsworth Bolstad. Mrs. Ginger Smith assistant education adviser at Bamberg noted a problem ech oed by Many education officials. A major problem Here she explained is that Stu dents sign up Send their papers to the a and then learn they can t get Money until they have counselling. Then they come to the education Center and it s too late to Duck the Money  Many advisers say it is nearly impossible to determine the extent of correspondence school activity in their area. I d estimate that for every student we have coming in Here for counselling there s another one that has signed but does t come by noted m. Sgt. Jack Lipscomb of the Pitburg air Force base Edu cation Center. Haydn Leclaire education adviser at Vicenza Italy said we be had very unfortunate experiences with com Mercial correspondence courses and their  he cited the example of a Soldier with an eighth Grade education signing up for a $900 Law course and another Case of a sol Dier who took a data processing course that fitted the Man for nothing and was not  Leclaire said there is no Way he can pre vent the salesmen from getting on Post at Vicenza or visiting the men in their quarters. Jack Tatum education adviser at Aviano air base Italy said the education Center offers much cheaper correspond ence courses. He noted that of five men coming in during a previous week for approval of commercial courses three changed their minds and opted for College correspondence courses through Musafi. He noted that two of the courses would have Cost More than $1,000. One of our substitutes was $30," he said. He explained maybe our course was t As extensive but we could get him two or three courses that would cover  a similar instance of servicemen changing their minds after learning of the correspondence school options Avail Able through the education Center was cited by adviser Dennis Fritts in Bremerhaven. Fritts noted that of five students who came in during july through september two dropped their plans to take the com Mercial course and chose much cheaper Musafi courses instead. Bill Nygard education adviser at As Schaffenburg said that of 100 servicemen who came in from january through sep tember he had talked All but one. Out of taking a commercial correspondence course. That one wanted to be a minister he explained. Nygard said the Serviceman had seen the course advertised in a Maga Zine. I Don t Tell them the course is no Good i just Tell them of the alternatives he concluded. Mrs. Rosemarie curl ged guidance Counselor at Neu Ulm said if a Serviceman wanted a particular course More advanced than those offered at the Center she gave the Serviceman the name and phone number of commercial firms. At Necka sulm education services offi cer James Scalise said some correspond ence school salesmen leave their literature at the education Center and that most of the firm s Are considered reputable. Is Cole education adviser Hodges against anybody trying to fleece  one s the limit the veterans administration will pick up the Tab for Only one course of study at a time per student a fact of life presently causing gis educational headaches according to several education advisers in Europe. Students have been coming in to education centers to sign up for the a financed prep program and work toward their High school diplomas Only to learn that they can t because they Are taking correspondence courses at a expense. Counselor said students must either drop the correspond ence courses delay enrolling in the prep program until the courses Are finished or pay for the correspondence courses themselves. Education advisers warned that Only one program change is permitted with a second change allowed Only with counselling and the change approval in t necessarily a sure thing. Further changes could Cost servicemen their a educational benefits. Friday november 16, 1973 stars and stripes Page a 3