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Stay up-to-date with news and information about your military education. You can get the information you need to make informed decisions about your online and military correspondence programs. Learn what's going on with military continuing education and how you can make a smooth military transition. Your civilian career awaits you!

There'll be dozens of U.S. athletes in China over the next few weeks proudly representing their country, but for Army Pfc. Vincent Hancock, representing the stars and stripes is nothing new.

Hancock is in Beijing as a member of the U.S. shooting team who will compete in the skeet event. The nineteen year old Army truck driver is assigned to the Army Marksmanship Unit out of Ft. Benning. He got his chance to go to China by nabbing first place this past March at the Olympic shotgun trials in Texas.

Hancock is one of nine U.S. service members competing for Gold this summer. Click here to learn more about Hancock. Hancock married his wife Rebekah this past May and now that she is military spouse at Ft. Benning, she qualifies for Career Advancement Account (CAA) funds, which allow military spouses at select installations to use up to $3,000 a year for schooling.

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Posted by Allied @ 10:18 AM • 0 comments

The news for Army spouses and their families got a whole lot brighter this past year when Army leaders signed the Army Family Covenant, which is a written commitment by the Army to improve the quality of life for Army families.

During a signing ceremony at Fort Knox Army Gen. George Casey emphasized that families are the backbone of the Army and its Soldiers. He credited Army families with standing firm behind Soldiers during six years of frequent deployments.

The covenant addresses five key areas that impact the quality of life for Army families. The Army's plan consists of:

-Standardizing and funding existing family programs and services
-Increasing accessibility and quality of health care
-Improving Soldier and family housing
-Ensuring excellence in schools, youth services and child care
-Expanding education and employment opportunities for family members

The expansion of education and employment opportunities, along with improved child care resources, should help Army spouses who want to work or train for a new job. Army spouses with computer and Internet access can take advantage of Army Spouse Education to train for a new career. Army spouses should also look into fields that lend themselves to home-based businesses, such as medical transcription or medical billing. It's also important to note that some schools offer military spouse tuition discounts.

Army spouse education, of course, is just one piece of the larger quality of life issue that the Army is addressing. Secretary of the Army Pete Geren summed up the importance of the Army family best when he said: "The health of our all-volunteer force, our Soldier-volunteers, our family-volunteers, depends on the health of the family. The readiness of our all-volunteer force depends on the health of the families."

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Posted by Allied @ 1:16 PM • 0 comments

A 2005 Army study revealed that approximately 15% of its enlisted soldiers were of either Hispanic or Asian descent. The same study noted that from 1995 to 2005 the percentage of Hispanic soldiers serving in the active-duty Army more than doubled. It's probably a fair bet that some of these soldiers are the children of immigrants and grew up speaking their parent's native language. And much the same can probably be said for members of the Marine Corp, Navy, Air Force, Army National Guard and Coast Guard.

It's common to remark that the military is a reflection of the society it defends, and the most recent U.S. Census Bureau reported that an estimated 11% of Americans speak a second language fluently. Military service members who speak and write two languages can market themselves to employers who operate in diverse communities.

Careers that may require work with immigrant communities, like those in the medical field, benefit greatly from bilingual skills. Today many medical offices and hospitals serve communities whose residents speak only Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, or any number of immigrant languages. A Medical Administrative Assistant or Medical Biller who can speak Spanish, for example, will be a very useful employee.

The same goes for careers in the real estate industry. Real estate agents, real estate appraisers and home inspectors that can serve the members of a specific ethnic group, are assets to clients, customers, homebuyers, brokers or whomever they do business with. Spanish-speaking military personnel who go on to be licensed contractors can use their skills in the home building industry.

Bilingual service members need to promote their language abilities to potential employers. Because many service members grew up speaking both English, and their parent's native language, they don't recognize its importance. This is a mistake. It is a marketable skill and should be listed on resumes and mentioned in job interviews.

Service members can use their military tuition assistance programs to help pay for up to 100% of tuition and fees for online courses in real estate, the medical field and business. Service personnel should take advantage of this military education benefit to beef up on their career skills and prepare for their military to civilian transition.

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Posted by Heather @ 3:51 PM • 0 comments