It all started as a friendly wager between two 86th Munitions Squadron Airmen about who could get their Community College of the Air Force degree first. Through a lot of motivation, this friendly wager spiraled into an all out battle among the 86th MUNS Airmen.
“After the friendly wager, it kind of exploded into the rest of the shop. I started doing some persuasive motivation,” said Staff Sgt. Richard Reynolds, 86th MUNS conventional maintenance supervisor. “People would say, ‘I’ll do it when I have time,’ or other excuses until it would be too late, so I started walking them through the process.” The flights of 86th MUNS banded into three groups, each with their own team leader.
The team that completes the most CCAF degrees during the challenge will receive a beverage of their choice, and the team that earns the most credits will have lunch provided to them by their team leader. “Airmen that live in the dorms like myself don’t really have to sacrifice too much,” said Airman Kenneth Collins, 86th MUNS conventional maintenance crewmember. “I thought about how it would take a bunch of my time, but I’m never going to look back and think, ‘Man, I should have played more video games.’”
The challenge began in February and closes out at the end of July when the semester is over. After noticing the mass participation, 86th MUNS leadership took it a step further and coordinated an education fair in their conference room to effectively educate Airmen on the education benefits available.