education  center  personnel  in  counseling  service members  and  guiding  them  into  appropriate  degree programs. DANTES DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAM The DANTES Distance Learning Program offers opportunities to earn college, university, or technical credit wherever military members may be stationed. The  DANTES  Distance  Learning  Program  offers many alternatives to traditional on-campus or on-base courses.  Options are critical for military members who need other ways to fulfill degree requirements. What programs are available? DANTES Independent Study Program .  Service members  may  take  courses  for  academic  credit  at levels  ranging  from  high  school  through  graduate work.  The DANTES Independent Study Catalog lists approximately  6,000  courses  from  40  colleges  and universities.   DANTES External Degree Program.  Enroll in full degree programs available at a distance from about 45 accredited colleges and universities.  With few or no residency requirements for degree completion, these programs  are  very  useful  to  military  members  in achieving their educational goals.  DANTES publishes its   DANTES  External  Degree  Catalog  every  year listing these degree programs. DANTES  Catalog  of  Nationally  Accredited Distance Learning Programs.   Schools listed in this catalog offer hundreds of technical and nontechnical courses  leading  to  certificates  in  vocational  and technical  subjects;  in  addition,  some  schools  offer associate, bachelor’s, and masters degrees.   ESOs should obtain the most recent copies of all the  above  catalogs  used  in  the  DANTES  Distance Learning Program. If you have access to the Internet, you can examine the  DANTES  Distance  Learning  home  page  at http://voled.doded.mil/dantes/dl.    It  contains  all  the Distance Learning catalogs, explains these programs and links Internet users to the affiliated schools.  It also contains  tips  for  selecting  and  completing  distance learning courses.  You can also send an e-mail to the DANTES  Distance  Learning  staff  at  dstlearn@ voled.doded.mil. Q51.   What  program  offers  opportunities  to  earn college, university, or technical credit wherever military members may be stationed? Q52.   What catalog lists approximately 6,000 courses from 40 colleges and universities? DANTES TROOPS TO TEACHERS The  Department  of  Defense  Troops  to  Teachers program was established as a five-year program in Jan 1994, scheduled to end 30 Sep 1999.  However, it is expected that on 1 Oct 1999 there will be a new revised version of Troops to Teachers.  The current program has  proved  so  successful  and  made  such  a  positive impact on the hiring practices of many school districts that it has garnered much public support.  There are many  legislative  actions  in  Congress  to  extend  the program for a number of years.   To find out the latest on the new revised version of Troops  to  Teachers  (new  eligibility,  benefits,  etc.), contact  the  main  office  in  Pensacola,  Florida  at 1-800-452-6619,  e-mail  ttt@voled.doded.mil  or  the web site at http://voled.doded.mil/dantes/ttt. The  current  FY99  Troops  to  Teachers  program provides Referral Assistance and Placement services to  service  members  and  civilian  employees  of  the Department of Defense (DOD) who are interested in beginning  a  second  career  in  public  education  as  a teacher or teacher’s aide. The  goal  of  the  1994  legislation  was  to  help improve  American  education  by  providing  mature, motivated, experienced, and dedicated personnel for the nation’s classrooms.  The three main objectives of the program are to: Assist military and civilian personnel entering a new career in public education. Provide  positive  role  models  for  the  nation’s public school students. Help relieve teacher shortages, especially in the subjects of math and science.  Any school district may participate. The primary function of the current FY99 program is  Referral  and  Placement  Assistance.  DANTES provides counseling and assistance to help participants choose  the  area  in  which  they  want  to  teach,  both academically  and  geographically.  State  Support Offices  have  been  established  in  21  states  to  assist participants with both certification requirements and employment leads. Who’s eligible? For  the  current  FY99  version  of  Troops  to Teachers, the following are eligible to apply:  Military 2-13