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Show Students of 'Foxhole University' Do Homework Between Battles $ A Million Servicemen Continue Education By Correspondence A few months ago an American Ameri-can doughboy lay concealed in an advance scout post among Italy's hills, walkie-talkie walkie-talkie strapped to his chest and straining every faculty to catch any sound from the Germans just over the crest ; of the rise. I Suddenly he heard a gutter-al gutter-al voice, speaking authoritatively authorita-tively in German. The Yank frowned in concentration, trying try-ing to catch a few words. Fortunately, For-tunately, he had been studying study-ing German in "Foxhoje University" Uni-versity" in his spare time, and the knowledge of it he had already gained proved sufficient. suffi-cient. Snapping open the circuit "of his walkie-talkie he raised his own command com-mand post in the rear, and warned: 'They're going to move behind the hill to the right, and send a few men to the left as a feint. Watch out for tricks." He had understood the German voice correctly. American gunners ignored the feinting movement, fired when the flanking maneuver had been almost completed, and practically prac-tically annihilated the enemy company. com-pany. This time the soldier's German studies paid a timely dividend, but this is not unusual as Foxhole University's Uni-versity's courses frequently improve the student's military efficiency at the same time that they improve his chances of success upon his return re-turn to civilian life. Founded early in 1942, "Foxhole University," formally known as the United States Armed Forces Institute, Insti-tute, is now the world's largest educational edu-cational institution. In November, 1944, approximately 1,000,000 men and women in uniform were studying study-ing individually in correspondence of self-teaching courses or in groups in locally organized classes. Far-Flung Student Body. Wherever Americans are stationed throughout the world, men and women of the army, navy, coast guard and marine corps are studying study-ing subjects ranging from economics econom-ics to engineering or from Spanish to sociology. And the students themselves them-selves are just about as varied as the curriculum." - For instance, there's Pvt. Arnold Brewer, an Eskimo member of the Sixth Supply Squadron, who is based inside the Arctic circle. In his off-duty off-duty hours he is studying USAFI's Elementary English course. A corporal in a medical battalion, William H. Lindley had completed three years pre-medical study at Indiana In-diana University when he entered the Army. - After completing his Army basic training, he enrolled through USAFI in an extension course given by Indiana University. He is accumulating credits toward his M. D. degree. Salvatore J. Ezzo, Philadelphia, left high school before he had completed com-pleted his senior year. A sergeant in a fuel control office at anair base, Ezzo became the first soldier in the North African, Italian or Middle Mid-dle East theaters of war to obtain a high school diploma for in-service training. Scarcely a month after Americans had established a beachhead on Rnneainville in the South Pacific. iole University' Between Battles .- -1 t i, ,L 5Hfr- y 1 , . v s - ; - ( " I ' ' i i -y " A v "1 Perched on the hood of his jeep, Sergeant Hoffman employs a few spare minutes to study during a lull In firing on the camp rifle range, somewhere in the Middle East. while the island was still under continuous con-tinuous bombing, strafing and shelling, shell-ing, TSergt. Donald N. Roberts, Coshocton, Ohio, a machine gunner, completed and sent to the USAFI another in his series of automobile mechanics lessons. Spanish Class on Bougainville. Bougainville is considered one of the wettest islands in the world, with 11 feet of rainfall a year. Despite weather conditions, another soldier, TSergt. John Alcorn of San Francisco, Fran-cisco, conducted nightly Spanish lessons les-sons for his mates under the USAFI group study plan. He also studied Japanese by himself. Because he had missed elementary elemen-tary physics 10 years before while in high school, Pvt. Richard E. Gun-nerson, Gun-nerson, Kansas City, Mo., stationed in North Africa with an operations office attached to an engineer unit, studied USAFI's elementary physics course. While in a North African battle area, SSergt. Donald L. Clement continued his bookkeeping . lessons. Returning his papers for correction to USAFI he wrote: "Red ink has not been used on these bookkeeping lessons, as I do not have any available avail-able and the local foxhole does not carry it in stock." From Anzio beachhead, when American forces were pinned down for months, an infantryman wrote of his USAFI course: "It's funny but I can concentrate best when I'm driven into my hole by artillery fire and have to stay there for hours. I keep my books and a typewriter in the hole and just start studying when the shelling begins." Nearly Three Years Old. Established in April, 1942, as the Army Institute, to give Army enlisted enlist-ed personnel a chance to continue study that the war had Interrupted, to aid them with their military duties, and by adding to their education, edu-cation, improve their citizenship, USAFI's services were extended to Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard personnel in September, 1942. The following February the name was changed to United States Armed Forces Institute. An official Army and Navy school, its headquarters a former mail-order company store overlooking the Wisconsin capitol at Madison, USAFI is operated by the War Department De-partment (Information - Education Division, Army Service Forces) with the cooperation of the Navy Department Depart-ment (Educational Services Section, Bureau of Navy Personnel). At first USAFI offered only correspondence cor-respondence courses. Now, however, howev-er, self-teaching courses and off-duty off-duty classes have been added. Self-teaching Self-teaching study and off-duty group studies have been particularly feas- r .'rsLWa lis x !il ft c'l ? . J sWis- . "1 This handsome building with its Oriental decorations houses the - Middle East branch of the USAFI in Cairo. Notice the camel in the foreground, and the British policeman in white uniform and pith helmet. ible for soldiers stationed in all sorts of places, sometimes near and inside in-side battle areas. USAFI now offers a complete academic aca-demic program in high school," technical tech-nical and college .subjects. More than 250 subjects may be studied through the institute's own correspondence corre-spondence classes. Hundreds of similar subjects may be studied in extension courses offered by the 85 colleges and universities, located in more than 40 states, as well as Hawaii and Canada, which cooperate cooper-ate with the institute. In November, 1944, nearly 400,000 men and women were enrolled in correspondence courses, some working work-ing for high school diplomas, others taking technical subjects to perfect per-fect skills or increase their knowledge, knowl-edge, others picking up university credits that would lead to degrees. Approximately 600,000 were enrolled for self-teaching or off-duty classes. Enrolled with USAFI in September, Septem-ber, 1944. among the thousands of Corporal Schwarz gazes-, proudly on her certificate, proclaiming that she has completed the course in Arabic with distinction! others, were: 311 members, of the armed forces who had left school before be-fore completing the sixth grade; 35 with PhD degrees; 26,573 high school graduates; 2,211 with bachelor's bache-lor's degrees; 191 with master's degrees. de-grees. Follows Its Students. USAFI has kept pace geographically geographi-cally with its students and there are now nine overseas branches in operation. oper-ation. The first branch was established estab-lished in Hawaii in the fall of 1942. Others were opened in rapid succession suc-cession in England, New Caledonia, Alaska, Egypt, Australia, India, North Africa (now located in Italy), and Panama. One fee, $2, enrolls any member of the armed services (except Army officers who pay the entire cost of any USAFI course or examination they require) for any course or service serv-ice offered by the Institute. As long as the student continues to "pass," he may continue to enroll for additional addi-tional self-teaching and correspondence correspond-ence courses given by the Institute. Except for commissioned and warrant war-rant officers, and, flight officers of the Army, the Government will pay half the text and tuition fees up to $20 for each university correspondence correspond-ence course. Army officers must pay for their own courses. Former musicians, salesmen, lawyers, law-yers, fanmers, mechanics, bike racers, rac-ers, clerks, engineers, chemists, professional pro-fessional basketball, football, and hockey players are taking USAFI courses. More than half of the students stu-dents are stationed overseas. Every Ev-ery week USAFI ships 60,000 textbooks text-books abroad, a freight-car load of learning. "Now that all the Japs here are dead ones, and we are getting lights, I have started reviewing my lessons les-sons and wijl send No. 3 to you as soon as possible," wrote SSergt. Arthur Ar-thur Davis, with a weather squadron, squad-ron, stationed on a Pacific Island. Corp. Edward A. Wittenhauer, granted an extension in the time allotted al-lotted for his course, wrote: "I find it very difficult to keep my lessons up to date. I am at a bomber station sta-tion in England. This should explain ex-plain why I am so busy." |
