Reservist still teaches college classes online while serving in Afghanistan
March 21, 2007 by Lillie
My client Ted Janicki is a reservist in the US Air Force currently deployed to Afghanistan. That would be more than enough to keep most people busy, but Captain Janicki wanted to maintain some normalcy during his deployment. Since he’s a college professor at Mount Olive College, Mount Olive, North Carolina, nothing is more normal to him than teaching.
So Dr. Janicki has been teaching computer science online to Mount Olive students while he’s in Afghanistan -getting up early, missing meals, or staying up late to handle his teaching duties so they wouldn’t interfere with his military responsibilities. He teaches communication to 8600 Army/Police level officers and soldiers and mentors Afghan Army and Police Signal Commanders.
He occasionally writes articles for the base newspaper, and he’s an Air Force representative for AnySoldier.com, serving as the point of contact for donations sent to his unit. This is a wonderful way to support the troops, and you can read more on Captain Janicki’s blog.
You can also read a newspaper article about this soldier-educator in the News & Observer article about his recent speaking engagement while home on leave.
Thanks for sharing this information, Lillie. Mount Olive isn’t too far from my area; I live near Raleigh, NC.
This gentlemen is a testimony to the faithfulness of our troops and to someone who fits in his passion with his military service. Just the type of person I need to remember if I ever lag with my tasks.
We don’t often think about our troops coming from all walks of life. Yet reservists take time away from professional careers as well as their families to risk their lives to serve our country along with the regular troops. They all make great sacrifices for something they believe in … and, as you say, should inspire us when we find our workloads sitting at a computer daunting.
Let’s hear it for technology. That’s really great. Some people are born teachers no matter what their current capacity.
The Nouveau Riche University would like to congratulate Mr. Janicki for his dedication and to say that the university would be proud to have such a teacher.
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