European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 11, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 a the stars and stripes Friday May 11,1990letters a aces questioned procedures explained now that the flood of angry responses from the literate element of Usa eur s Soldier population has subsided. I d like to make a few observations concerning educational support of service members. As a taxpayer it appears to me that Usa eur talks smart about a training but acts stupid about Quot spending take for example the latest plan to restrict tuition assistance to courses which Are Job related As determined by the commander. In a recent article an aces army continuing education system spokesman asserted that a Cost was not the reason Tor the and furthermore. A we wont see a reduction in funding of the tuition assistance program. Funding was not the driving Force behind the changes Quot i beg to differ but any adult capable of Independent thought now realizes that the reality of reduced budgets is the driving Force behind the re evaluation of virtually All government programs. The Ces spokesman continued that a the change would Lead to More soldiers enrolling in degree programs linked directly to their that is hardly Likely to be the Case. The mos related courses that Are currently available do indeed attract a number of personnel working in a related specially maps taking Law enforcement mechanics taking automotive service. Etc. But these courses when and where available already tap the sources most Likely to enrol in them. Does us eur suggest that even More mos related disciplines will be de eloped even As plans Are drawn up to reduce the troop presence overseas not Likely does Usa eur expect that fewer troops spread out Over the same territory will make More vocational technical courses possible 1 not Likely More Likely the percentage of category 1 and 11 High Quality soldiers recruited based upon educational benefits and the Promise of off duty College of Portum Tes will decrease dramatically. At the Quot same time those High Quality cat 1 amp ii soldiers currently in their first enlistment will lease the service after their initial tour in Esen higher numbers than Thev currently do. A a similarly those cos who Are self disciplined . Goal oriented and High achievers will also lease at the first Opportunity if their personal educational Progress is stymied. These Are the types of Soldier that the department of the army should be expending the most Effort to retain As we move into the 2 1 St Quot Century. Instead it appears that Usa eur is Content to aim for a Force composed of and led by soldiers ssh Lack the Kossl Edge. The desire and the Pride to Rise above 10th Grade Lesel of performance. Quot it recruitment retention and readiness of the High est Quality soldiers is really an objective of Usa eur. Than i m afraid the proposed mos linked to restrictions will ensure that the objective is not met. Simple recognition that education is valuable on its own Merit and that soldiers sacrificing their own the importance of Retreat i would like to reply to a letter titled. A Lack of respect for hag disturbs writer Quot i would like you to know that some military members do take Retreat ceremony very seriously. In order to help me understand the re Reaf ceremony a lot better. Not Only did my husband explain the purpose of Retreat to me. He took our daughter and me to watch a Retreat Here at Hahn a. Hen 1 see How much Pride my husband and the men performing the Retreat ceremony took. 1 could t begin to Tell Sou How it made me feel. I think it is the responsibility of the military member to educate family members As to the importance of honouring the Retreat. If they see just How much Pride these Sers ice members have for our flae. Maybe some of it will rub Oil onto the spouse and a Barbara j. Pitchers Hahn a. West German yen pals 1 2 a o j tv31s a Kate a a ? w to of it i a a is dec i it a pc liver i s i of i s cd a. I -.3. pc a Gas go ii a co to Aro-z1 s h of ,.a Sre a 6vi Pivir Orts xxv time and Money for College Are probably troops we should seek to Quot retain would seem to indicate that Usa eur is Way Oft base in restricting educational growth in the name of the governing regulation does indeed address a relevance and or general value to a Soldier s Usa eur apparently does t share the concept that support of personal growth is a tied directly to retaining Quality soldiers and enhancing their professionalism and increasing the combat readiness of the army Quot a 621-5 army continuing education system. Chapter 3. Paragraph 31. A communities have been directed to ensure that s2 is spent on education programs for every $1 spent on education overhead. Sounds reasonable does it not communities that spend at least twice the amount on programs that they spend on salaries and other overhead costs Are doing a great Job. Those who Don t Are regarded As mismanaged. It s certainly an interesting concept. Management by spending. The More you spend the better the manager you must be. Here s How it works in practice theory aside Community a operates an education Center whose overhead costs Are $5,000/year. It spends $5,000 on tuition assistance for 30 soldiers to take undergraduate. Job related College course. Twenty five soldiers Complete their courses and receive their College credit. Good for them bad for Community a. Your overhead program ration is Only la. Community b also has an education Center whose overhead costs Are s5.000/year. It however spent $10,000 to enrol six majors in Job related Wank Wink graduate courses. Five of them Complete their course. Your overhead program ratio is a strapping 2 Community a your staff will be reduced which w ill reduce your overhead. Community b Good Job. You sure can spend that Money. Community a has been taught a valuable Federal government economic lesson. Actually reduced staff Means reduced Contact with soldiers and commanders which Means fewer programs run. Which Means less Money spent which Means an increasingly poor overhead program ratio. It also Means less service to our soldiers and. Dare i say it their family members. Community b. On the other hand has also Learned a valuable government economic lesson. The result of spending is unimportant As Long As an organization can demonstrate its robustness by spending every received. The greater the amount spent the better the government manager. That is the heart of the problem. As a taxpayer. I reject and resent the apparent government including military idea that spending Money is the same As managing Money. A the Usa eur aces staff is apparently Content to play Quot emperor s new clothes Quot on both Quot the linkage Issue of tuition assistance and military occupational specially Moses Well As the 2-for-i spending requirement. I say that both policies Are transparently wrong creating Only the illusion of contributing to better management of the Usa eur education programs. The soldiers civilians and family members deserve better a James d. Neville Erlanger West Germany editors note a Dennis Hickethier chief operations Branch army continuing education system division office of the Deputy chief of staff operations he Usa eur replies Usa eur army continuing education system aces welcomes the Opportunity to address the concerns expressed in this letter. All the issues in your letter were discussed at multiple Usa eur staff Levels during development of new Usa eur policy on aces. An overriding philosophy of the Usa eur command is that aces should spend Money on programs which Are a Job related and this philosophy is in concert with the regulation governing aces operations. It is also in line with policies for tuition assistance used by most employers including the us. Government. It is agreed that a education is valuable on its own Merit and that soldiers sacrificing their own time and Money for College Are probably troops we should seek to Many of these soldiers will probably be eligible for tuition assistance and Many others will be Able to use some other funding such As Pell Grants and i Bill benefits to pay for College tuition. Aces employees will work with soldiers to secure whatever funding is available. The Usa eur goal to expend s2 for Soldier programs for every is expended on overhead is an attempt to make More dollars available for Soldier program enrolments. It is also intended to reduce management positions at select locations with no reduction in Counselor positions. This Means that two Small education centers located close to each other should be managed by one person instead of two but the level of Counselor support available to help soldiers and interact with commanders should not change. Usa eur is Well aware of How the 2-for-l Rule can be misleading. It is Only one of the performance measures that aces examines when evaluating How Well employees manage. The policy does not teach that a the greater amount spent the better the government it teaches managers that within constrained resources spending must be balanced appropriately Between overhead and programs and emphasis must be placed on using maximum dollars for programs. Any further concerns suggestions and comments about these issues can be addressed to the Usa eur director of education aces Bruce e. Mcleod jr., at he usareur/7a, attn a age to aces Apo 09403. I a Ltd a. To pm l a v Mcoy amp at Zoady a a �?�1 g it n m a ooh available i 4 z i $ oct Oliie it i Cux a a rcom ii a a v Vej of o p was Fez i he Era sub mined i 0��?� Quot
