Grantham University Names 2009 DETC Outstanding Graduate
Recently, Grantham University announced that its 2009 DETC Outstanding Graduate is Walter “Cal” Smith. Cal was chosen for his outstanding academic record, his contributions to his profession and his well written essay. Cal entered college right after high school, but struggled because he admittedly lacked the maturity and discipline that was necessary for success. Sixteen years later, after being passed over for job interviews and promotions, he decided that earning a degree would be the best way to break through his professional “glass-ceiling”. “I was weary of working endless overtime hours to earn a comfortable living for my family,” he said. He was already successful in his career, but needed a degree to get him to the next level. Because of work restrictions, Cal had a difficult time attending a traditional university. Not only did he burn through vacation time so he could attend class when his work schedule wouldn’t otherwise permit, he also wasted time commuting to and from school. After expressing frustration, one of his previous managers told him about Grantham University. Cal was looking for an accredited online school with technical Bachelor of Science degrees and Grantham was a good fit, both professionally and personally. “Grantham’s flexible schedule allowed me to shift time and effort between work and school when my job needed to take priority,” commented Cal. While completing his undergraduate degree, Cal served in several security roles safeguarding nuclear weapons, nuclear explosive devices, special nuclear materials and classified materials. He designed and deployed the first “Virtual Fence Line” extended-range intrusion detection system used to protect nuclear weapons for the Department of Energy (DOE). In addition, Cal is the lead DOE domestic and international instructor for Tabletop scenario analysis and combat simulation, with students from 43 allied nations. Along with classroom instruction, he developed advanced computer-based tools for assault planning, near real-time battle tracking and scenario documentation. Cal has applied many of the principles he learned in his Computer Science courses to his work, such as integrating Systems Engineering principles into his security analysis and upgrades design, implementation and sustainment, and using his programming skills to develop and refine combat simulation and tracking software within DOE. He currently works for Sandia National Laboratories, assisting the U.S. Navy as a technical advisor for strategic weapons protection at Submarine Base Kings Bay in Georgia.
Alan was hungry for knowledge and worked hard to succeed which was evident when he aced his first course and then his first class and kept it up for eight semesters. While taking classes at Grantham, Alan continued to search for a job, but couldn’t find anything comparable to the pay and benefits he had with his previous employer. All of that changed the day he earned his Associate of Science in Electronics Engineering Technology. He was negotiating with a company who was offering a salary below what he wanted, but when he earned his ASEET degree, their tune changed. “I received my dream job, the pay was excellent, the work was rewarding and life was good,” said Alan. Now that he has completed his BSEET degree, Alan is ready for even bigger and better things. Currently, Alan tests and troubleshoots commercial aircraft systems. He works in Preflight and Delivery for the Boeing Company as a grade 9 Aviation Maintenance Technician in the 747 program. He commented, “The understanding of electronics and systems that I learned through Grantham has enabled me to save my company an untold amount of money and embarrassment by being able to resolve technical issues at the last minute.” Grantham University had a wonderful group of candidates for the 2009 Outstanding Graduate Program, and it was difficult to choose just one. Congratulations to each and every one of you! |
Since the inception of the Distance Education and Training Council’s (DETC) Outstanding Graduate Program twenty-five years ago, Grantham University has continuously awarded this honor to one of its graduates each year. Criteria for this award include a GPA of 3.5 or higher, significant contributions to society and to their chosen profession and a written essay addressing their education and its application to their career and community. This year’s nominees included: Lori Guess, Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with a 3.95 GPA; Alan Trail, Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering Technology with a 3.87 GPA; Walter “Cal” Smith, Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with a 4.0 GPA; and Shawn Johnson, Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with a 4.0 GPA. 
Runner-up for Grantham University’s Outstanding Graduate was Alan Trail. Alan has been in the commercial aviation industry for over 20 years. Following a huge downfall in the aviation business due to the September 11th attacks, Alan was laid off from the largest manufacturer of commercial jets in the United States. “I had already been looking at Grantham University prior to this event, but being laid off was certainly a catalyst to get enrolled,” commented Alan.
As You “Deck the Halls” this Holiday Season, Don’t Forget to Include the New GU Holiday Ornament
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This holiday season, decorate your tree and show your Grantham pride with the new GU ornament. This shatterproof (for those of you with children and pets) blue ornament arrives individually gift-boxed and features the Grantham University logo in white and yellow. There is a limited number available for purchase, so visit the Campus Store at
GU Becomes a Member of NAIMES
“Grantham University is honored to become the first nationally accredited distance learning institution to join NAIMES,” said Dr. Greg Garcia, Ed.D., dean of military programs and outreach at Grantham University. “For nearly 60 years, Grantham has served the educational needs of our nation’s military service members and we are proud to become part of an organization that is an advocate for the military student and promotes ‘best practices’ for conducting military education.” NAIMES is committed to promoting high quality, pedagogically sound educational opportunities for the military community. NAIMES endorses the ideals of voluntary education and in so doing represents a wide range of colleges and universities. Membership in NAIMES is by invitation only. Institutions invited to join must be accredited, interested in education for military personnel at locations other than on their respective campuses, entered into Memoranda of Understanding or contracts with one or more military installations, and have been approved for membership by a majority vote of NAIMES member institutions. |
On October 29th, Grantham University announced that it has become a member of the National Association of Institutions for Military Education Services (NAIMES).Staff Spotlight: Dr. Mark Eaton
Prior to joining the University four months ago, he was the Director of the Crown Advanced Learning Center for Crown Partners and the Director of Associate Education at Cerner Corporation, which was ranked 13th in Training Magazine’s 2007 Top 125 Learning Organizations. He also taught at Avila University in their Master of Science in Organizational Development program. Dr. Eaton served 24 years in the US Air Force as a Communications – Computer Systems officer. While serving, he continued his education through off-duty MOA schools and distance learning schools. He understands what it takes to serve your country and pursue your education, even during deployment. It was during his time in the Air Force that Dr. Eaton first became involved in the field of academics. He served two terms in education and training, one as an ROTC instructor at Troy State University and another as an enlisted technical instructor in communications. As he approached retirement, Dr. Eaton began thinking about a career that combined his communications – computer systems background with his love for learning. “I have spent 14 years in the education and training field, and I absolutely have no regrets,” said Dr. Eaton. He has several goals in his new position at Grantham, some of which are: better organization of online content to make it easier for you to navigate and complete assignments, better instructional designs that promote quality communications between you and your instructors, better distribution of learning workload so you can more practically manage your learning, and better response in updating content, fixing errors and managing exceptions. In the short-term, he is reviewing the course evaluations that you’ve submitted so he can assess and improve our existing courses where needed. In the long-term, Dr. Eaton would like to enhance the continuous improvement model for our courses and degree programs and create other delivery modalities so that more service members (even those deployed to remote locations) can continue their education through Grantham University. Dr. Eaton enjoys working in the field of academics because he gains a better understanding of how people learn, uses technology to improve learning, and most of all, provides opportunities for adult learners who would otherwise not have the chance to achieve their educational goals. He would like to offer this advice to you, “When entering an online/distance program for the first time, understand that it takes new skills – some technical, some in personal management. No matter how smart you think you are, you should realize that this will be a new experience and like any new adventure, preparation is the key.” Dr. Eaton has a Ph.D. in Computing Technology in Education and Training from Nova Southeastern University and a Master’s Degree in Systems Management from St. Mary’s University. He is married with three children and two grandchildren. |
Over the last month or so, some of you may have noticed some changes and improvements in Grantham University’s course materials. These changes are due in large part because of the efforts of Dr. Mark Eaton, Grantham’s new Director of Curriculum Development, and his team.Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Christopher Low
Currently, Dr. Low teaches BA420, Organizational Behavior; BA500, Management; and BA101, Introduction to Business. He has also taught International Business, International Marketing and developed courses on the Middle East. When asked what he enjoys most about instructing Grantham students, Dr. Low said, “I get tremendous satisfaction from helping adults verify their skills and experience with an academic degree. Another benefit I get from teaching adult students is that they will argue with you. If the text says one thing and they have experience to the contrary, I am likely to hear about it – and that’s what makes teaching fun!” Dr. Low holds a Ph.D. from the UCLA School of Management and a Bachelor of Arts in French and Arabic from the University of Minnesota located in his hometown of Minneapolis. Prior to teaching, he served as a French interpreter in Berlin, Germany, was Vice President of Economic Development for the Bering Straits Native Corporation, and did transportation planning for the State of Alaska. He spent 17 years teaching in Anchorage, Alaska and ran the MBA program at Alaska Pacific University. While in this position, Dr. Low also taught in Russia and spent two years as the Director of the Fulbright Educational Exchange program in Morocco. Most recently, he spent four years teaching in Barrow, Alaska, which is as close as you can get to the North Pole without a paddle, at the only Native controlled college in Alaska, Ilisagvik College. “This was an experience which highlighted the challenges of those seeking higher education in a cultural context with no tradition of formal education,” he said. “We had a school holiday for whale hunting season and frequent alerts when Polar bears would invade campus!” |
Global Faculty Member, Dr. Christopher Low, has been teaching for 35 years and has spent the past year at Grantham University. He entered the teaching field because of his love for the constant changing interaction with his students. Initially, he planned to teach Arabic and Islamic Studies and traveled to the area quite frequently during his graduate training. “It was after my third trip that I came to realize that there were two hundred million Arabs who would always speak better Arabic than I, so I switched to International Management,” commented Dr. Low. University Continues Outreach to Military StudentsAlmost two years ago, Grantham University established the Military Programs and Outreach Department in order to meet the unique needs of our military students. Today, these efforts are spearheaded by a growing group of staff including: Dr. Greg Garcia, Dean of Military Programs; George Colon, Randy Houle and Val Vera, Regional Directors of Military Programs and Outreach; and Camille Davis, Military Outreach Manager. "We're working hard to establish a continuing, recurring presence in some of our military communities through a series of scheduled visits," said Dr. Garcia. "This has been a successful endeavor, and we are looking forward to duplicating these efforts in other military communities around the country."
In 2003, after 39 years of uniformed and civilian service, Dr. Garcia retired as an Air Force civilian Education Services Officer. As a member of the Air Force Education Services program, he has worked with a wide variety of institutions serving the military while assigned to Glasgow AFB, Montana; Westover AFB, Massachusetts; Eielson AFB, Alaska; Elmendorf AFB and HQ Alaskan Air Command, Alaska; Vandenberg AFB, California; Spangdahlem AB, Germany; MacDill AFB, Florida; Holloman AFB, New Mexico; HQ AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas; and Keesler AFB, Mississippi. Dr. Garcia earned his Doctorate in Adult, Community and Higher Education from Montana State University. He also holds a Master of Education from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and he completed his Bachelor’s degree in Social Science from American International University.
While on active duty, he earned three Associate of Applied Science degrees from the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF), in Weather Technology, Instructor of Technology and Military Science, and Human Resource Management. He also earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Professional Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Val began his Air Force career in 1960 and spent his first seven years with the Air Force Security Service. In 1968, he was transferred to Mountain Home AFB in Idaho as an Education Services Specialist. His next assignment was at the Education Directorate, Headquarters, Air Forces in Europe in Wiesbaden, Germany. He then served three years at Education and Training, Headquarters 8th Air Force in Barksdale AFB, Louisiana. His final tour was with Education Services at the Pentagon where he retired at the grade of Chief Master Sergeant with 23 years active duty. Established in early 2007, the mission of the Military Programs and Outreach Department is to facilitate academic access and success for the military students of Grantham University. Its goal is to respond to significant changes in the military community and enhance the academic experience of military students. |
As one who completed his high school GED and most of his higher education through a military education services program, Dr. Greg Garcia, Dean of Military Programs and Outreach, is very familiar with the challenges our military students face while simultaneously serving our country and continuing their education.
George Colon serves as the Regional Director of Military Programs and Outreach in the Middle States region which includes installations in Missouri, Kentucky, Kansas, Nebraska and Illinois. In 2003, George began his career at Grantham University as a VA Benefits Administrator and in October 2005 was promoted to the University’s Director of Student Affairs. Prior to Grantham, George retired as a Master Sergeant from the United States Army after 23 years of service. He holds an Associate degree in Business Management and a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resource Management.
Randy Houle, the University’s newest Regional Director, serves installations in the South Central region of the United States, which includes the following states: Louisiana, Florida, Mississippi and Alabama. Having retired from the United States Air Force after 20 years of service, Randy’s military background provides him with the insight, compassion and knowledge needed to effectively serve Grantham’s military student population.
Rounding out our group of Regional Directors is Valente “Val” Vera who services the Southern California/Nevada region. Val has worked for more than 43 years in military voluntary education, culminating as the Education Services Officer at Edwards Air Force Base, California.
Camille Davis, Military Outreach Manager, is responsible for providing outreach support to our Regional Directors and students by following up with student issues, helping current students, enrolling new students and assisting them until completion of classes or graduation. As an Army dependent for over 30 years and an Air Force spouse for 15, Camille has a great understanding of the military perspective. This experience, coupled with her background in public relations, sales, education and military relations made her a great fit for the Military Programs and Outreach team. Camille earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Valdosta State University. November is Military Family Appreciation MonthEach year, the nation takes time to recognize and celebrate military families. Grantham University would like to thank each of our military families for the sacrifices you’ve made and for the tireless support you show your loved ones each day as they serve in our nation’s armed forces. Here are just a few of the ways that corporations are recognizing military families across the US: Raytheon "Thanks" Military Children with a Free Book Art and Essay Contest Sponsored by ASYMCA 2009 DECA Scholarships for Military Children The program awards $1,500 scholarships to well-rounded, accomplished children of military families. Only dependent, unmarried children (under the age 23) of active duty personnel, reserve/guard and retired military members, survivors of service members who died while on active duty or survivors of individuals who died while receiving retired pay from the military may apply for a scholarship. Applicants should prepare to submit an essay on the following topic: "What would you place inside a time capsule to help people in the next century understand military life today?" Applications must be turned in to a commissary by close of business on Feb. 18, 2009. At least one scholarship will be awarded at every commissary location with qualified applicants. Hickory Farms Waives APO/FPO Fee Don’t forget to visit your installation’s MWR center to find out how they are celebrating Military Family Appreciation Month. |
Upcoming EventsNovember 24th: Military Programs’ Outreach Visits to NAS JRB New Orleans & MCAS Miramar |
Quote of the Month“Success is not measured by what you accomplish but by the opposition you have encountered, and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds.” ~ Orison Swett Marden |