VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. -- The Vandenberg Space Force Base Education Center, operated under the 30th Force Support Squadron, held an open house Oct. 4, 2023, to introduce four schools that are now open and will maintain a full-time presence on base.
The schools are Purdue Global, National University, the University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC) and Allan Hancock College.
"Opportunities like these add value for our workforce and families living here," said Col. Mark Shoemaker, commander of Space Launch Delta 30. "We're always striving to make life at Vandenberg better, and this is a great example of that hard work paying off."
This increase in education accessibility opens the door to new scholastic and future career opportunities for members across the installation, as Vandenberg has not held college and university classes at the education center since 2019.
“Vandenberg is also the first location Purdue Global has opened an extension office on a military base,” said Kelli Diaz, 30th Force Support Squadron chief of force development. “The presence of these highly respected educational institutions on our base is immensely exciting. Having them as close partners, collaborators, and resources will substantially enhance our ability to provide educational support and offer improved opportunities for our uniformed personnel, veterans, and their families."
Purdue Global offers degrees in multiple computer science and cybersecurity fields and National University offers degrees in biology and clinical lab science. Diaz said by this time next year, the education center’s intent is to have a fully functioning science lab to mitigate lab fees that aren’t covered by tuition assistance.
“We specifically targeted these four schools to join us,” said Diaz. “To gauge interest on what Guardians and Airmen wanted to pursue degrees in, we put out a survey during last year’s American Education Week. Out of around 800 surveys, the degrees offered by these schools were among the highest requested.”
UMGC will offer degrees in business administration, human resource management, management studies, and marketing. Allan Hancock College will offer classes to cover all general education requirements for service members to receive an associate degree, in addition to a Community College of the Air Force degree.
For more information, contact the education center at 605-5904 or 30FSS.FSDE.WorkFlow@spaceforce.mil.