The American Council on Education (ACE) recently completed a successful review of 26 courses offered at the Paul Hall Center. The review was conducted by a team composed of eight educators with expertise in culinary arts, health and safety, deck and engine courses.
The review team examined 15 courses that had been previously approved and required renewed approval, and 11 new courses being offered, or courses that had never been submitted to ACE for approval.
The American Council on Education is a college credit-recommending service. What this means for Paul Hall Center students is, for example, unlicensed apprentices earn up to 13 college credits for Phase I of their training which can be used in the future toward a degree. Courses submitted to ACE are reviewed and are recommended for college credit.
There are two degrees that students (depending on their shipboard department) may earn at the SIU-affiliated school: Associate of Applied Science in Nautical Science Technology, and Associate of Applied Science in Marine Engineering Technology. Mariners may transfer these credits to higher learning institutions for consideration in pursuing their degree.
For more than 30 years the Paul Hall Center has utilized the benefits provided by the ACE College Credit Recommendation Service. Generally, this involves having ACE assess new or rewritten curriculums at the school as they become available.
It has long been the policy of ACE that learning outside the classroom can be measured for college credit. For instance, since 1945, ACE’s Military Evaluation Program has assessed formal military courses in terms of academic credit.
In 1974, the College Credit Recommendation Service was created to evaluate learning in business and industry settings. The Paul Hall Center called upon ACE in those early years to begin evaluating its courses in order to provide additional educational and training opportunities for its students and to verify the quality of the courses offered to the mariners.
Since this initial collaboration with ACE, the College Credit Recommendation Service has saved mariners thousands of dollars in college tuition as students have submitted their course work from the Paul Hall Center to meet college course requirements. Colleges and universities have also been well-served by the program, because qualified adults from the workforce have been motivated to complete their postsecondary education knowing that their previous studies and life experiences can convert into college credits.
It is important to note that each college or university determines which of the courses approved by ACE will be accepted toward a certificate or a degree. Students planning to use their Paul Hall Center courses for credit, or wanting information on how ACE-recommended credits could assist them with their continuing education, should contact the academic department at the Paul Hall Center prior to submitting their transcript.
At the closing presentation of the most recent ACE approval, a team member evaluating the courses (a professor at a maritime university) stated the courses he reviewed were as good as the courses taught at his university, said Paul Hall Center Director of Training J.C. Wiegman. “For the instructors, management, and support staff to hear those words makes everyone very proud to work at the Paul Hall Center.”
Members of the ACE review team included Dr. Clay Warren, Depew professor of communications, George Washington University, Washington, D.C.; Dr. Dori Finley, professor of nutrition and hospitality management, East Carolina University; Dr. Robert Dawkins, American Military University; Dr. Polly Buchanan, associate dean and coordinator of technology, Eastern Michigan University; Warren Whitley, battalion chief/deputy fire marshal, Prince William County, Va.; Dr. James R. Sherrard, professor/chairman, engineering technology, Three Rivers Community College, Norwich, Conn.; Dr. Frank Warnakulasuriya, senior lecturer and lead department head, marine engineering technology, Texas Agriculture and Mechanical University; and Dr. Malcolm Allen, career and technology division, Community College of Baltimore County.
The following courses were reevaluated and approved: Galley Familiarization, Galley Operations, Certified Chief Cook, Advanced Galley Operations, Certified Chief Steward, Basic Fire Fighting (35 hours), First Aid/CPR (21 hours), Basic/Advanced Fire Fighting Combined (46 hours), Water Survival (60 hours), Tankerman Assistant Cargo (63 hours), Basic Safety Training STCW (40 hours), Automatic Radar Plotting Aids (ARPA), Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS), Bridge Resource Management (Limited) (26 hours), and Welding (105 hours).
The newly approved courses are Pumpman (70 hours), Basic Meteorology (40 hours), Magnetic and Gyro Compasses (20 hours), Terrestrial and Coastal Navigation (80 hours), Cargo Handling (Operational Level) (66 hours), Ship Construction and Basic Stability (40 hours), Emergency Procedures (Operational Level) (21 hours), Search and Rescue (Operational Level) (16 hours), Electronic Navigation (40 hours), Basic Shiphandling and Steering Control System (40 hours), and Watchkeeping (Operational Level) (80 hours).
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