Mar 28, 2006 - 02:06:57 CST
FARGO (AP) - A new program at North Dakota State University aims to teach military officers how to more efficiently transport and track everything from ammunition to medical supplies.The military logistics master's degree will be offered starting this fall. Twenty career military officers and civil servants, including Army Capt. Jim Gannon, will be the program's first students.
Gannon, who is stationed in Fort Stewart, Ga., said he often was frustrated during his recent tour of duty in Iraq because when a shipment left a distribution site, it was nearly impossible to track it or change its direction. That delayed getting supplies to the officers who needed them, he said.
The Department of Defense selected NDSU for the three-year master's degree pilot program, said program manager Brian Kalk. If it is successful, it could become permanent.
The curriculum is an expansion of the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute, an independent research and education center on campus.
Students will be coming from across the country, some from overseas deployments, Kalk said.
Kalk, a former logistics officer with the Marines, said war in Iraq has taught officers that they need a more efficient way to track resources. "Logistics is always the key to battlefield success," he said.
One aspect of the program is training officers to use radio-frequency identification tags and other technology to track supplies, similar to how many retail stores are starting to track products.
The NDSU courses also will train officers on geographic information systems and global positioning systems, said Denver Tolliver, the academic program director.
"Our primary goals for the program are to acquaint (officers) with the most current thinking and technology about military logistics and supply chain management," he said.
The curriculum also can be applied to homeland security and natural disaster responses, Tolliver said.
The 36-credit program will be condensed into one year. The Department of Defense will pay the students' tuition. Graduates will continue their military or civil service careers, likely for another 10 to 15 years, Kalk said.
Gannon said the logistics degree interested him more than any other master's degree program. He said his service in Iraq gave him a good understanding of the Army supply system and some of its shortfalls.
"I want to help prevent this waste in the future," Gannon said.
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