Doolittle Fellowship Awarded to Navy Sailor for First Time
30 August 2022
From Cryptologic Technician (Collection) 1st Class Allison Hunt
The U.S. Air Force’s 17th Training Group, in partnership with Angelo State University awards the James H. Doolittle Fellowship to highly competitive instructors stationed at Goodfellow Air Force Base.
This year, for the first time, a Navy Sailor was awarded the Doolittle Fellowship, allowing him the opportunity to pursue college full-time while completing his current tour.
Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) 1st Class Scott McLaughlin, assigned to Information Warfare Training Command Monterey Detachment Goodfellow, was granted the opportunity to finish his associate’s degree thanks to the Doolittle Fellowship Program. The fellowship awards one military joint service member a total of $4,300 to cover tuition, fees, and books for one semester totaling 15 credit hours. To be selected for the program he competed against other joint service members in a formal board.
GOODFELLOW AIR FORCE BASE, Texas – The U.S. Air Force’s 17th Training Group, in partnership with Angelo State University awards the James H. Doolittle Fellowship to highly competitive instructors stationed at Goodfellow Air Force Base.
This year, for the first time, a Navy Sailor was awarded the Doolittle Fellowship, allowing him the opportunity to pursue college full-time while completing his current tour.
Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) 1st Class Scott McLaughlin, assigned to Information Warfare Training Command Monterey Detachment Goodfellow, was granted the opportunity to finish his associate’s degree thanks to the Doolittle Fellowship Program. The fellowship awards one military joint service member a total of $4,300 to cover tuition, fees, and books for one semester totaling 15 credit hours. To be selected for the program he competed against other joint service members in a formal board.
McLaughlin said he believes his college experience will be beneficial to his role as an instructor at Goodfellow.
“I expect to learn more techniques for instruction from my college professors,” said McLaughlin. “I also intend to get involved with student study groups and hope to glean study-facilitation techniques as well.”
McLaughlin acknowledged the benefit of having Senior Chief Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) Jason Sikora as his mentor throughout the entire process.
“The Air Force was under no obligation to offer this opportunity to its joint service partners, but I’m grateful that they did,” said Sikora. “CTI1 McLaughlin has proven himself to our detachment as a Sailor who can overhaul complex programs and turn them into self-running machines. I’m excited to see how this experience will not only enhance him as a Sailor, but also benefit the joint cryptologic education community as a whole.”
McLaughlin be completing the courses necessary to attain a degree in associate’s degree in interdisciplinary studies with a focus in math and Spanish. This will be his first time attending college, but with the credits he earned through his Navy schooling, he will reach his goal after this semester. He said he is looking forward to soaking in the experience and embracing the challenges that come with being a full-time college student. McLaughlin, currently serving as a Spanish-language cryptologic language analyst instructor for apprentice-level Sailors, is set to start classes and will finish the semester in December.
With four schoolhouse commands, two detachments, and training sites throughout the United States and Japan, Center for Information Warfare Training trains over 26,000 students every year, delivering trained information warfare professionals to the Navy and joint services. Center for Information Warfare Training also offers more than 200 courses for cryptologic technicians, intelligence specialists, information systems technicians, electronics technicians, and officers in the information warfare community.