The Army is actively seeking innovative programs and ideas to address the recruitment and retention challenges it faces. One such idea is the newly designed Blended Education Program (BEP) at the U.S. Army War College. The BEP is a hybrid program that combines the best aspects of the residential program, including staff rides to Gettysburg, Washington D.C., and New York City, with the remote flexibility of the distance education program, all within a 10-month academic year. It aims to help retain talented senior officers who wish to remain at their current duty stations while furthering their professional military education. Carl Benander, an AY24 BEP graduate, and Dr. Mark Duckenfield, the director of the program, joined podcast editor Ron Granieri to discuss the program's early successes and lessons learned. The BEP offers a mix of synchronous and asynchronous learning, allowing students to interact with each other and their instructors in real time. Although still in its early stages, the BEP has been a success so far and is expected to continue and grow in the future.

For more information about the Blended Education Program at the U.S. Army War College contact the director of the program, Dr. Mark Duckenfield [email protected]

I was not interested in three moves in a one- to two-year span. And so I was looking for any opportunity to to have some stability for the family. So that was really the appeal.

Carl Benander is a Special Forces officer and a colonel in the U.S. Army. He is the commander of the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Liberty, NC. He is a 2024 graduate of the Blended Education Program (BEP) at the U.S. Army War College.

Mark Duckenfield is the Dwight D. Eisenhower Chair of National Security and a Professor of International Economics in the Department of National Security and Strategy at the U.S. Army War College. Prior to joining the USAWC, he taught at the Air War College, the London School of Economics, and University College London. He holds an MA and Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University. He has held research appointments at the Max Planck Institute (Cologne) and Birkbeck College. He is the author of Business and the Euro and editor of The History of Financial Disasters, 1763-1995.

The views expressed in this presentation are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Army War College, U.S. Army, or Department of Defense.

Photo Description: General Charles Q. Brown, 21st Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, visited the U.S. Army War College on September. 20, 2024 and spoke to the class of 2025, staff, and faculty in Bliss Auditorium.

Photo Credit: Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army War College, stock image via Freepik