The Chief Master Sergeant Paul H. Lankford Enlisted Professional Military Education Center is a division of the I.G. Brown Training and Education Center located at McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base near Knoxville, Tenn. The Center conducts an average of 16 Enlisted Professional Military Education courses each year. Typically, the Center accommodates 2,000 service members on campus annually from the Total Air Force, Coast Guard and partner nation armed forces. This is achieved using two delivery methodologies: traditional in-resident and a blended learning course. The traditional, in-resident programs deliver Enlisted PME curriculum in about five-six weeks. The Blended Learning Course is conducted through a Learning Management System with online instructor facilitation. It consists of a six week asynchronous learning environment followed by a two week in-resident experience. The Center is one of the Air Force's top producers of Enlisted PME students. See the Fact Sheet linked here for more information. See the Student Guide.pdf for attending ALS or NCOA.
The Student Guide linked here in PDF provides the necessary information for a successful PME experience. Whether attending ALS or NCOA in-residence or through distance learning, the information therein provides students with the course attendance and pre-arrival requirements.
Chief Master Sgt. Winfield Hinkley Jr. is the 15th Commandant of the Chief Master Sergeant Paul H. Lankford Enlisted Professional Military Education Center at McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base in Tennessee. Chief Hinkley is responsible for the daily operations and public perception of the United States Air Force's largest and longest continuously running EPME center. Read his full BIO.
USAF Noncommissioned Officer Academy is a six-week course that further builds upon the leadership skills needed as Airmen progress to mid-career status as noncommissioned officers. See the Student Guide.pdf for attending NCOA.
USAF Airman Leadership School is a five-week course that prepares Senior Airmen for positions of greater responsibility by providing many of the leadership skills required of supervisors and reporting officials. See the Student Guide.pdf for attending ALS.
Our EPME graduations and banquets are a celebration of student accomplishment with inspiring key-note speakers.
While the TEC encourages leadership, Airmen and family attendance, interested parties should work with their student(s) directly for attendance at any graduation or banquet. Students are responsible for coordination and invitations to their graduations.
Professional Continuing Education (see the courses menu on this web page) on behalf of the National Guard Bureau functions as the program management office for the Instructional Development and Production and Transmission Branches, develops and maintains advanced distributive learning and video products and manages TEC TV and the Warrior Network.
Production Branch personnel include PCE's broadcasting, video and graphic experts who work with our Instructional Development and Transmission personnel to turn your data, ideas, requirements and graphics into professional products within the Department of Defense.
PCE's Transmission Branch includes the Air National Guard's satellite television broadcast studios, TEC TV and the Warrior Network, which are housed and operated on campus. It provides information transport capabilities for the purpose of mass communication and distance learning via satellite to 189 downlink sites across the nation.
Why communicate through PCE? Transmission Branch personnel and capability enable high-definition live broadcasts for virtual conferences, workshops, and functional manager meetings that reduce travel expenses while still providing relevant and timely content to the field. Transmission Branch broadcast capabilities are a key support element for Professional Continuing Education events that are held on, or off, the TEC campus to include live or time-delayed broadcast of various training courses and workshops, enabling maximum content exposure at minimum cost.
What is the future of PCE? The future of PCE is to deliver training, conferencing, workshops, command information, news and other video content to networked ANG systems to include workstation computers. This capability increases the accessibility of content for all ANG members, reduces or eliminates travel expenses, and supports the TEC strategic goal to leverage technology to achieve its mission.
Enrollment: Students MUST register for the course through the BASE FORCE DEVELOPMENT Office (previously known as Base Education and Training Manager).
Schedule: contact instructor development, 865-336-3859 (DSN 266-3859), for availability as well as traveling courses*.
Reporting instructions (PDF): Click Here
Course length: 10 days
College credits: 3 CCAF credit hours
Course description: this two-week Instructor Certification Program Course introduces students to the philosophy, methodologies and practice of the Instructional Systems Design model. Students learn how to analyze student needs, design educational academic or criterion objectives, develop lesson plans and student materials and teach from these lesson plans using two different teaching methodologies; in most cases, the Informal Lecture and the Demonstration performance teaching methods. Students also develop evaluative instruments such as multiple choice test questions and performance evaluations to ensure students have mastered educational objectives. Students also analyze test data, participate in student counseling sessions and provide feedback to other students in the course. This course is a mandatory requirement for Satellite Facilitators.
*Seats for the traveling courses are reserved for the sponsoring unit. If additional seats become available they will be advertised to the field. Students entered into the course not from the hosting unit will have TLNs canceled.
Schedule: contact the coordinator, 865-336-3817 (DSN 266-3817), for dates and availability.
Course length: 3 days
College credits: None
Course description: the General Officer Support Staff Course is a three-day comprehensive course, emphasizing basic position information necessary to serve and support general officers. This course is designed to give support staff the knowledge and skills needed to be successful. Subject matter experts prepare, design and deliver lesson plans with the assistance of personnel from the TEC's Professional Continuing Education staff.
Protocol Working Dinner
Schedule: contact the coordinator, 240-612-9490 (DSN 612-9490) for dates and availability.
Reporting instructions: the first Monday is a travel day. Report to billeting to check in and receive your welcome packet. This will provide report times, building and classroom number. The last Friday is a full day, so do not schedule flights prior to 4 p.m. EST. McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base base is co-located with Knoxville International Airport. There are no base shuttles, but local taxi services are available to bring you base-side. Course instructors also have transportation and pickup from the airport available, but contact must be made prior to departing from your home.
College credits: none
Course description: provides the training, knowledge and skills needed to serve as a public affairs manager. This includes identifying the mission and functions for a public affairs office, deployment of assets and management of resources, budgeting, customer relations and ethics, along with safety considerations. Includes in-depth theoretical and working knowledge of how a public affairs office functions. All students should be prepared to discuss local policy and procedures practiced at their bases. Students are encouraged to bring programs, products and training aids (i.e., media kit, brochure, web site instructions) for the marketing and operating of their facility. A copy of a mission/vision statement and other descriptive literature or brochures is beneficial.
Schedule: Units should check with their base command chiefs and/or unit chiefs to coordinate TEC instructor travel and classes at their bases. A video of the Bullet Writing Class is available on the TEC public web site, under the News tab.
Class length: Two hours
Class description: the objective for the TEC Bullet Writing Class is for each Airman to comprehend the process of effective bullet writing. The course provides the basic information essential to successfully build bullets for EPRs, 1206s, Form 77s, etc. It focuses on how the bullet should be structured based on the Action, Impact, and Result method. The lesson also provides a way to ensure effective writing by using the concept of Accuracy, Brevity, and Specificity.
The Mission Support Division provides force management, professional development, logistics, and information services to faculty, staff and students. The MSD team is the critical linchpin between the TEC and the base host unit - the 134th Air Refueling Wing - enabling efficient campus operations and integrated facilities management.
Airmen assigned to the TEC's operating location at Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, Ala., ensure that the Air National Guard is fully integrated into Air Force enlisted education, professional development and training programs. They are primarily assigned to the Barnes Center for Enlisted Education to develop curriculum, provide instruction and advise Barnes Center senior leadership.