DOD Service Academies: Academy Preparatory Schools Need a Clearer Mission and Better Oversight
NSIAD-92-57
Published: Mar 13, 1992. Publicly Released: Apr 01, 1992.
Skip to Highlights
Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the service academy preparatory schools that the Army, Air Force, and Navy operate to prepare selected individuals for admission to their service academies.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should determine what role the prep schools should play among the services' officer production programs and direct the services to clarify their school missions accordingly. |
Closed – Implemented
DOD and the services developed specific mission statements for the prep schools.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should consult with recognized authorities on educational quality to determine what standards would be appropriate to apply to the prep schools in terms of faculty and curriculum and require periodic reviews by qualified independent parties to ensure that the schools meet the standards. |
Closed – Implemented
DOD has contracted with the American Council on Education for assistance in developing a means to evaluate the quality of the prep school programs and faculty.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should establish standardized guidelines for the services to use in estimating school costs. |
Closed – Implemented
DOD has developed an instruction to standardize the reporting of prep school costs that GAO implemented to apply to the 1992-1993 academic year.
|
| Department of Defense | Once performance standards and cost estimating guidelines are in place, the Secretary of Defense should require periodic analysis of the cost-effectiveness of continuing to operate the prep schools. Consideration should be given to the role the schools play in helping the academies to obtain adequate numbers of qualified women and minorities. Given the relatively high cost per cadet/midshipman placed at an academy, consideration should also be given to alternative methods of providing academy preparation, such as using existing educational institutions or the private sector. |
Closed – Implemented
Cost effectiveness will be evaluated annually beginning with the 1992-1993 academic year. DOD will consider alternative programs.
|
Full Report
Office of Public Affairs
Topics
Agency missionsCollege facultyEvaluation criteriaFederal service academiesMilitary cost controlMilitary officersMilitary personnelMilitary trainingReporting requirementsSchools