Event to bring higher education options to base Published July 9, 2010 By Kimberly L. Wright Air University Public Affairs MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- Maxwell's education and training office is making it easier for those seeking higher education by bringing them a smorgasbord of options from which to choose. An education fair, themed "Education: Focus on the Future," will be held at the Maxwell Event Center from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 16. Fifty-six accredited local and distance learning institutions will be represented, including American Intercontinental, Ashford, Auburn University Montgomery, Troy Montgomery, Grantham University and Community College of the Air Force. Several base organizations such as Airman and Family Readiness Center, Air University Press and Maxwell-Gunter Community libraries will also be represented. Michelle Garten of the Maxwell Air Force Base Education and Training Services, the event organizer, said bringing these resources to one location will help military members and dependents take advantage of the multitude of educational opportunities available. The goal is "to help enlisted, officers and dependents get their education," she said. Postsecondary instruction was highlighted as a critical need for all citizens in a 2006 report by the U.S. Department of Education. In addition, 2009 statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics said that people who attain higher levels of education are more likely to be employed and receive a better rate of pay for their work. Technology makes education even more accessible to military families, and the nomadic way of life that is part of being in the military should not bar military families from higher education. Even stay-at-home parents can gain an education from the comfort of wherever they are currently calling home, and through online resources, their education can follow them, said Ms. Garten. "There's so much out there as part of online education," she said. Derrick Sanders, the chief of the family support branch at the Maxwell Airman and Family Readiness Center and co-chair of the Year of the Air Force Family, said the education fair is the last spotlight event for Maxwell's celebration of Year of the Air Force Family, a year-round, Air Force-wide focus on family-related issues and events that concludes this month. For more information on the education fair, contact the education and training office at 953-5959.