A Ball State administrator is the new Vice Wing Commander of the Indiana Wing of the U.S. Air Force’s Civil Air Patrol (CAP).

Lt. Col. Charles Greenwood, assistant dean for telecommunication services in the School of Continuing Education and Public Service, finds aerospace education and search and rescue two of the exciting aspects of the CAP mission. There are currently 24 CAP squadrons in the state.

"It has given me the opportunity to work with former military personnel and those interested in working with cadets," said Greenwood. "It has given me an opportunity to further my commitment to this great country in a productive way."

Greenwood has been involved with higher education for more than 30 years and with CAP more than 20 years.

"People here don’t know how well off we are until they travel to another country. This is the greatest country in the world."

The promotion means a new challenge for Greenwood, more regulations and additional responsibilities. He also plans on getting to know members of the Commander’s Staff and others of the Wing as they jointly work toward the development of plans and goals for the Indiana Wing.

Greenwood also sees a challenge in taking the cadet program into the 21st century through the enhancement of their leadership skills. Seeing how the squadrons are functioning with their respective communities will also be a challenge.

While working with the CAP, Greenwood and his group may be called upon at various times to respond to reports about some aircraft in trouble. One of the stranger things that happens in the modern age is one most people wouldn’t expect.

People who fly their own planes often take the electronic location transmitters with them when they leave their plane. So it’s not all that unusual to have a report of a plane’s locator going off at home or work, where someone has inadvertently activated it.

While he doesn’t have a pilot’s license, Greenwood loves to fly, though he personally prefers commercial flight to anything. When on active duty with the Army Corps of Engineers, Greenwood said he never could see the point of being a paratrooper and jumping out of a perfectly good plane. He still trains one day of every month at Grissom Air Force Reserve Base in Peru.

Serving as the assistant dean of telecommunications services, Greenwood sees a carryover between the two positions. Because of his position, Greenwood is responsible for many facets of distance education. In his university role, Greenwood is responsible for projection and scheduling of taped and live distance learning classes.

"The goal is the delivery of education to the citizenry, either in the home and/or the community," Greenwood explained, "However, the bottom line is to provide the educational access opportunities for the individual."

According to Greenwood, the standard statement for many people is "I always wanted to go to college, but...." And that’s where Ball State can make a difference.

"What we’re trying to do is to eliminate that argument. Because of that goal, interactive courses are now are now being offered on the Internet.

"USAF-CAP and my academic profession offer me the opportunity to be closely involved with the public; a chance to be part of the public’s educational and professional growth," said Greenwood.