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Penn State partners with Army National Guard and U.S. Coast Guard By Celena E. Kusch
	When Tom Scheidemantel was stationed at a U.S. Coast Guard post in Duluth, Minn., Penn State distance education courses were a welcome break from the long winters. He started working toward a bachelor’s degree in physics when he first shipped out to sea. The Penn State distance education courses allowed him to continue to learn while he served in the Coast Guard.   A new partnership between the Penn State World Campus/ Distance Education, the Army National Guard and the U.S. Coast Guard will make it easier for other military personnel, like Scheidemantel, to pursue their academic goals.   Through the new agreement, Penn State has been named a partner institution in the provision of distance education to soldiers, their spouses and civilian employees in the Army National Guard and Coast Guard communities. Penn State will work with the Army National Guard Institute and the Coast Guard Institute Voluntary Education Program to deliver college courses anytime, anywhere.   The Army National Guard Institute serves more than 360,000 Army National Guard soldiers, their dependents and civilian employees with support in the accomplishment of their personal academic development goals. The Coast Guard Institute supports the educational advancement of its 45,000 personnel and reservists.   Students will participate in the courses from around the world through Penn State’s World Campus and Independent Learning programs, earning the same high-quality degrees as those who attend campus-based programs.   “Penn State is very excited about our new alliance and hopes to serve the educational needs of Army National Guard and U.S. Coast Guard personnel for many years to come,” said Dr. Peter Forster, associate director of academic programs for the World Campus.   Penn State’s World Campus is already a member of the PricewaterhouseCoopers consortium that will develop and operate an on-line education portal for the U.S. Department of the Army. In its first year, the program, named Army University Access Online, will provide distance-learning opportunities to an estimated 15,000 U.S. soldiers stationed around the world.