MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- To mitigate negative impacts to Airmen, the Thomas N. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education shifted its enlisted professional military education courses from in-residence to virtual in-residence during the government shutdown, graduating the last virtual IR classes, Nov. 19, 2025.
In a pivot not seen since the COVID 19 pandemic, Barnes Center instructors provide EPME to 629 servicemembers during the shutdown, lasting from Oct. 1 to Nov. 12, avoiding rescheduling and training delays which can affect promotions, assignments and pay.
“Things don’t always go as planned,” Col. Stephanie Q. Wilson, Barnes Center commander, said. “Being able to shift modalities and still provide enlisted servicemembers with needed and required professional military education is critical for mission success and is a testament to the professionalism of our instructors and staff.”
The lapse in appropriations, or funding gap, made it impossible for servicemembers to use government funds for official travel to and from school; however, most Barnes Center instructors are active-duty military members required to report to work during a furlough, unlike their civilian counterparts.
“There was also a risk to the production pipeline,” Wilson said. “We educate more than 12,000 servicemembers a year, so educational delays don’t just impact the Barnes Center or an individual Airman, they can impact the entire Air Force. It just made sense to take the curriculum to the students.”
The Barnes Center greenlit the virtual in-residence shift for six of seven courses scheduled to start in October. The Enlisted Professional Military Education Instructor Course was rescheduled due to its complex nature and the awarding of an Air Force Specialty Code, an alphanumeric code used to identify a specific Air Force job.
“Ironically, we train PME instructors in conducting virtual IR classes during the instructor course, but a virtual IR course would not satisfy the requirements of the EPMEIC,” Senior Master Sgt. Angelica Engelmann, EPMEIC director, said.
Virtual instruction curriculum was added to the instructor course in 2020 in response to the COVID 19 pandemic, when social distancing standards and travel restrictions prevented students from attending in-residence PME courses.
Students attending virtual IR courses are still required to meet the same educational standards as in-residence students. Instructors teach the curriculum live through Microsoft Teams. The course content does not change, just the way in which it is presented. There are no physical training assessments, but PT is incorporated into the schedule and tracked by flight instructors.
“Servicemembers attending virtual IR courses are expected to show up in uniform and on time,” Chief Master Sgt. Iris Honrado, Barnes Center director of operations, said. “These courses are not self-paced; they are led by experienced instructors in real time.”
The Chief Leadership Academy and Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, Maxwell Air Force Base - Gunter Annex, Alabama, graduated 39 and 310 students, respectively. Mathies NCOA at Keesler AFB, Mississippi, graduated 58; Airey NCOA at Tyndall AFB, Florida, graduated 71; Sheppard NCOA at Sheppard AFB, Texas, graduated 74; and Gaylor NCOA at Joint Base Lackland, Texas, graduated 77. Additionally, the Lankford EPME Center at McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base, Tennessee, graduated 64 from their NCOA.