WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio -- The Air Force Institute of Technology School of Systems and Logistics here is the Air Force's designated provider of acquisition and logistics professional continuing education with courses delivered to war fighters around the globe.

The school, which is one of several schools in the institution, is comprised of 95 courses in areas such as acquisition management, systems engineering, financial management, software engineering and logistics management. Courses can be taken in-residence at WPAFB, on-site throughout the world, and via distance learning. Courses are open to DOD military and civilian personnel of all ranks.

"Our faculty is focused on tying education to experience," said Col. Jeffrey Lanning, dean of AFIT/LS. "We take what they know from experience and extend it allowing them to be better at their job. In some cases, our courses compliment what is taught by the Defense Acquisition University, but we focus on an Air Force perspective."

While the graduate school at AFIT offers masters and doctorate degrees, the School of Systems and Logistics is more geared toward professional continuing education. Because of this, new courses are generated based on need. A unit may identify a need for a portion of their force to get training and education. The unit then identifies a requirement for AFIT/LS to build a course that is tailored to the unit's field of work.

The school's course generation process allows customers to create unique programs such as a recent international program for allies who want to take service-connected courses. The school assisted with a program involving the Iraqi Ministry of Defense by developing 14 courses in various military disciplines.

A first for the school is opening up registration to defense industry contractors who may now attend on a fee per-hour-basis as long as they meet certain requirements.

"We increase the educational experience in our classrooms by having both industry and government personnel collaborate on the subject matters," said Walter Chin, department head of Business Operations Management. "It's very rewarding; it provides a different perspective."

The school also plays a part in consulting.

"Not only do we provide live courses, we also do a tremendous amount of consulting for programs throughout Air Force Materiel Command. We've reviewed risk management and systems engineering plans. We provide short workshops. It's a normal part of our business," said Richard Sugarman, a course director in the Systems and Software Engineering Department.

"The consulting piece has a sharpening of the sword effect on the faculty because now we can get more real-world examples to use in our classes," said Chad Millette, faculty council president and former acting associate dean.

Ken Farkas, associate dean for the school pointed out, "Our courses come alive because of our instructor's infusion of their experiences and intentional insertion of active learning methodologies when developing their course material."

"We go beyond just teaching students the policy," said Sugarman. "We show them how they can apply policy and give them the best practices to achieve policy intent."

"It's a big deal that we are practitioners from the field who come in with real-world experiences," said Millette. "Our faculty brings creditable background and experiences that apply directly to the courses we teach."

The school encompasses three teaching departments and one support function.

The Department of Logistics Management focuses on operational logisticians and their work deploying in the field. The department is currently working with Headquarters Air Staff and the Logistics Directorate to build and present a series of 25 new short courses focused to prepare field grade officers for leadership positions in the logistics community. This department also provides a series of courses called the Industrial Maintenance Management Continuum and courses in acquisition logistics.

"We focus our courses on the unique acquisition and logistics aspects of the Air Force," said Guy Fritchman, department head of Logistics Management.

The Department of Systems Acquisition teaches initial skills training courses that award the acquisition badge to almost 700 new AF scientists, engineers, program managers and contracting officers each year.  This department also teaches project management and cost analysis courses to junior, mid-grade and senior level personnel. They are developing a workshop that will teach Should Cost Analysis methodologies to AF acquisition personnel.

The Department of Systems and Software Engineering Management provides courses such as Enterprise Architecture Management, Risk Management and Human Systems Integration. They teach an application-level Manufacturing Readiness Assessments course for acquisition professionals. They lead a Software Professional Development Program portfolio of courses for coders and managers of software intensive projects.

The Department of Business Operations and Management performs the registrar function for the three academic departments.  They manage student records and support each instructor to ensure the smooth running of more than 450 course offerings per year.   

"Think about the amount of time, energy and resources the Air Force puts into making you better at your job; the ramping up of your education is phenomenal," said Lanning. "Here at AFIT/LS, we teach things you can use in your job next week."

Lanning is the dean of AFIT/LS and is well acquainted with the institute. He attended AFIT as a student in the early 1990s, later returned and taught as a professor in the graduate school, and assumed his current position as dean in July 2014.

For more information on AFIT/LS visit http://www.afit.edu/LS or contact the school at 937-255-7777 x 3105.