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                         March 8, 2002

By Pfc. Nate Jastrzemski
Staff Writer

The huge success of the U.S. Army online education program -- eArmyU -- has led to Army officials deciding to expand it beyond the original three installations. But soldiers at West Point will still have to wait before they see it here, said Army Education Center Director Ramona Kausch.

eArmyU is an Internet-only university for enlisted soldiers wishing further education. Currently more than 13,500 soldiers are enrolled at five installations and the program will be available at six more before year’s end.

"The current goal is for the program to be Army-wide by FY2003," Kausch said.

She said that although she’s not seen any plans yet for implementation at West Point, she thinks it might be here by next year.

"It will probably come in 2003 if the Army is on schedule with the funding," Kausch explained.

Kausch described eArmyU as a "seamless" program that allows soldiers to continue their studies on-line even through duty station changes. Transferring from one installation to another will not at all affect their continuing education, she said.

"And it not only helps soldiers individually, but it also helps them do a better job. What commander would not want an educated soldier?" she asked.

It isn’t for every soldier though, said Michael Ponder, the distance learning and eArmyU coordinator for Fort Campbell, Ky.

Fort Campbell was one of the first three installations to offer the program so Ponder said he’s had time to make some observations.

"We’ve seen in the past several months that this program is just not for everyone," he said. "It’s works great for disciplined people who can meet the requirement of 12 credit hours per year -- and not as easy as it sounds for soldiers with a lot of deployments.

"But," he said, "I’ve had soldiers come up to me and say, ‘This is the greatest thing. I don’t have to lay out my quarters and I can do all my assignments in my own time.’"

He said most soldiers really like the portability of the program.

"Only five posts -- Fort Campbell; Fort Benning, Ga.; Fort Hood, Texas; Fort Carson Colo.; and Fort Lewis, Wash. -- currently issue the computers, but soldiers can access their courses practically everywhere.

"There are connections everywhere to do this -- even in Bosnia and Kosovo. The only place the computer connections aren’t available is Afghanistan," he said.

In all, he said, the program has come a long way.

"The eArmyU program has been operational for about 14 months now, and it’s seen a lot of success," Ponder said. "It’s been refining and maturing, and a lot of progress has been made.

"It’s working quite well."