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Welcome to Education and Training
The CAP Senior Member Education and Training Program prepares members to serve their units, their communities, and their nation.
Chief of Education and Training - Col John Knowles
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About Us:
Civil Air Patrol Education and Training provides a continuum of professional education for our members through a deliberate and collaborative effort. Our program intentionally develops individual competencies if knowledge, skills, behaviors, and aptitude by developing self, others, ideas, and our
organization as a whole.
CAP needs an informed, active senior membership trained in leadership, management, and functional tasks. The CAP Senior Member Education and Training Program prepares members to serve their units, their communities, and their nation.
We provide our Education and Training in four distinct yet collaborative ways:
Volunteer University
Mentoring Program
Specialty Track Program
Continuing Education
However you choose to engage with Education and Training, our supportive all-volunteer team will always be available to offer advice, counsel, and support.
Volunteer University
Volunteer University provides the structure for the implementation of the Senior Member Education and Training Program. By engaging with Volunteer University, you will find the right format that fit your needs depending on where you are in life. Our flexible, module-based education is offered both in a traditional classroom format - onsite at the local unit level, and an online format designed to meet the needs for busy professionals and adult learners.
Volunteer University Learning Formats
VolU modules are set up so that a member can complete modules in the format that works for them. They can take a course all in-person, virtually, hybrid, or online through Absorb. They can take individual modules as time allows. They can also move between formats, completing some modules onsite and some online. This lets the program work for them and their availability, completion goals, learning style, etc.
Onsite Education: A True Collaborative Experience.
Classroom-based learning encourages the critical thinking, communication and problems solving skills that embrace our shared core values and mission of Civil Air Patrol. Volunteer University collaborates with local, wing, and region education and training staff and instructors to offer our module-based education onsite with classes following a number of flexible time formats that can occur based upon the needs of members. Instructors may also offer individual modules to meet the needs of members. For example, our professional level modules can be offered as a course onsite, all-virtual, or hybrid, with all modules offered over multiple days, or spread-out over longer periods, such as once a week with 1-2 modules in an evening. Additionally, VolU sponsors a Virtual-In-Residence model of education that offers module education for Levels II, III, IV, and our Command electives virtually via online collaborative platforms like TEAMS™ and ZOOM™.
Online: Learn Your Way, at your own pace.
Volunteer University is a pioneer in volunteer non-profit online education. VolU Online students are a community of Civil Air Patrol members from many different backgrounds, including many working professionals who are trying to better their CAP opportunities through continuing their level education. Onsite, face-to-face education will never go away, but the online classroom has become a vital complement to our member’s level education options. We know that online learning may be new for many, and are committed to helping our members succeed while helping them take advantage of the flexibility and convenience of the online format.
In addition to traditional onsite education, VolU also offers a wide array of online module education designed for our members who are working professionals or for our members who want to engage outside of the traditional onsite program. Programs are hosted on the Absorb Learning Management System. After enrolling for the course (Level II, SCC, etc.), members can take any or all modules online. This is self-paced and members can start a module when eligible and ready and complete it in a timeframe that works for them.
Mentoring Program
Our mentoring program is built around deliberate relationships in which knowledge and skills are shared between members in a way in which everyone benefits. Often a more senior person is mentoring a junior person, but mentorship can happen between any two individuals. Mentoring will help our
members discover their strengths by achieving their full potential through a structured, trusting mentoring relationship. Additionally, the mentoring team offers targeted seminars to help grow our future leaders, which our members earn VolU module credit in our elective programs - Squadron
Commanders Course (SCC), Region Commander Course (RCC), in addition to various overall level credit.
Specialty Track Program
The Specialty Track program is an integral part of CAP Education Efforts, it’s tactical, task-based training to ensure our members are most prepared to execute their CAP duty position. Currently we are editing the tracks and making administrative edits as we look to the future and revamp the program.
Continuing Education Program
The Continuing Education Program seeks to empower CAP members through an accessible impactful and holistic education that positions us for success.
