Frank  Buckles, the last living World War I Doughboy, died early Sunday morning at the age of 110.  Born on February 1, 1901 in Bethany, Missouri, Buckles’ life spanned one of the most turbulent, exciting, and eventful times in history.  A resident of Charles Town, West Virginia where American Public University System (APUS) is headquartered, Buckles was well-known within the local community as well as nationally. 

At the age of 17, only a year after the United States entered World War I, Buckles lied about his age and joined the US Army.  Buckles volunteered as an ambulance driver and was sent to France where he found the suffering of the French people disturbing.  In a 2001 interview for the Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project, Buckles said, “’The little French children were hungry….To me, that was a pretty sad sight,’” demonstrating his compassion for those living in the midst of the Great War.  During his time in France, he also escorted German prisoners of war back to their homeland after the signing of the Armistice. 

After the war, Buckles held various positions with shipping and steamship companies and was assigned to locations throughout the world.  During World War II, he was working as a civilian in Manila and was captured by the Japanese and held for 39 months in a prisoner of war camp.  In the mid-1950s, Buckles settled in Charles Town, West Virginia where he owned and ran a cattle farm.  Buckles remained quite active until his death.  Aside from maintaining his farm (he continued to drive his tractor until the age of 106), he advocated for a suitable memorial in Washington, DC to commemorate the sacrifices of those with whom he served in World War I.

Read the rest of this entry »

I was pleased and proud to have been on hand last weekend in Chantilly, VA during our 2009 commencement ceremonies to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of more than 2,800 APUS graduates.  (To see a compilation video from the ceremonies, click here.)  American Public University System (APUS) granted 1,252 Graduate degrees, 1,318 Bachelor degrees, and 235 Associate degrees during the past year.  Reflecting the importance of education in today’s increasingly complex and technical world, the many demands on today’s professionals, and the quality of our programs, 26 percent of our Bachelor and Associate degree grantees have already enrolled with us to pursue another degree.

Few events generate as much excitement, pride or sense of accomplishment as a university graduation ceremony.  Our students hail from all 50 U.S. states and 135 countries worldwide.  They include active duty servicemen and servicewomen; dedicated public servants; and accomplished professionals engaged in a range of technical, analytic, and management positions.  They are also wives and husbands, mothers and fathers, daughters and sons.  Their accomplishments are outstanding!

As impressive as the graduating class of 2009’s numbers and statistics are, the stories, the accomplishments, the hopes and the dreams of individual American Military University (AMU) and American Public University (APU) graduates are equally as fascinating.  I appreciated having the opportunity to catch up with many of the graduates who attended our ceremonies.  What they said about their experience with APUS was certainly of interest to me and offers insight and inspiration to us all.  I have summarized a few of them.

Kim Beyers received a B.A. in Homeland Security from AMU last weekend, thrilled that her parents and family members could be on hand to help mark her accomplishment, and is looking forward to another AMU graduation ceremony in the not-so-distant future, when she earns her AMU Master’s degree in Homeland Security.  Ms. Beyers, an information systems specialist, is on active duty with the U.S. Army, and plans to retire in 2010 – but she has no plans to stop working.  She was posted in Turkey when the national tragedy of September 11, 2001 occurred, and she vowed shortly thereafter that she would continue her public service beyond her military career by contributing to the nation’s security – which she hopes to do in an analyst position with the Department of Homeland Security or the Defense Intelligence Agency following her retirement.  

Charles Russo currently works as an analyst with a large defense contractor and received a B.A. in Intelligence Studies with AMU last year.  Charles plans to pursue an M.A. in Intelligence Studies with AMU beginning next year.  Mr. Russo attended the APUS graduation ceremonies as one of our alumni ambassadors, there to congratulate a new class of alumni.  He says his degree program with AMU has given him perspective and insight which complements his more than 14 years of intelligence experience.

Susan Wadehul received a Master’s degree in Public Health with a concentration in Emergency & Disaster Management from APU (as well as a stellar 4.0 GPA and “Outstanding Graduate Student Award” for the School of Public Safety and Health), in what was the culmination of a self-imposed challenge – and likely the start of an exciting new phase in her life and career.  In September, 2004, the registered nurse and emergency medical technician was diagnosed with viral meningitis, and told it could take up to three years to fully recover.   Unable to lift heavy objects or to work, but otherwise healthy, Susan decided to pursue a master’s degree in “something broader” than a traditional nursing program.  She found in APU what she calls “the perfect combination:” an online master’s degree program in public health, with a concentration in emergency management.  Now fully recovered and back at work full time at Newton-Wellesley Hospital in Newton, MA, Susan hopes her newly minted degree will allow her to realize another dream:  to teach other aspiring healthcare providers in nursing, public health and/or emergency management.

Clearly, these and all of our APUS graduates are already making their mark in a range of fields crucial to our nation’s military, government, social and economic success.  I believe their education and experience with AMU and APU will not only make them more successful in their individual careers – but that they will make life a little better for all of us in their ongoing service to our country.

Congratulations to the AMU and APU graduating classes of 2009, and all the best from the administration and faculty of APUS!

Every now and then, I run across a good book that has been out for a while and which escaped my attention.  Such was the case with David Maraniss‘ They Marched into Sunlight which was published in 2003.

Maraniss, an editor at the Washington Post, crafted an excellent non-fiction book which is actually two stories with the crescendo event of both occurring in the October 17-18, 1967 two-day period.  Storyline number one is about an ambush of two companies of the Black Lion battalion in Vietnam.  As the Vietnam War continued to escalate, General Westmoreland and the Pentagon were under pressure to bring back better news, and President Lyndon Johnson (LBJ) was under fire from conservatives and liberals as well as the radicals against war.  Storyline number two is about students at the University of Wisconsin who led a sit-in against recruiters from Dow Chemical, manufacturers of napalm, and a favorite target of anti-war elements across the nation.

Read the rest of this entry »

In 1907, the U.S. Army Signal Corps was created to assume responsibility over all matters pertaining to military aviation, and in its earliest days was a fledgling force of only eight aviation balloons, a dozen officers, and only slightly more enlisted men.  From that small yet effective force came the modern United States Air Force, established as a separate branch of the military services on September 18, 1947.

In the decade before its separation from the United States Army, the U.S. Army Air Corps as it was known proved its strength during the protracted battles of World War II.  By September 1939, the German army and air force had managed to defeat and occupy Poland, Norway, Holland, Belgium and France.  It was in the wake of such worldwide conflict that the Air Force began to develop into one of the world’s most effective military forces.  Equipment and funding poured into the U.S. Army Air Corps as President Franklin Roosevelt began to realize that in order to defeat the determined Germans, the United States would need a superior military aviation force. 

Read the rest of this entry »