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Local teacher to take on Navy students The aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson will be Medford resident Bill Kirtley's home for two months as he teaches government classes to Navy personnel. Kirtley says he's assuming the ship will be stationed in the Persian Gulf. Two-month assignment takes place aboard aircraft carrier By JIM DAVIS Bill Kirtley will begin his second career battle-ready. The former Medford high school teacher will be flown to a U.S. aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf to teach college-level government to Navy seamen and women. "I want to give them a taste of college," Kirtley said. "So when they get out of the Navy and go on to college, they'll already have a feel for the demands." Kirtley, 58, who has earned a graduate degree in political science, will teach local, state and federal government on the USS Carl Vinson for a two-month stint. He will be one of five teachers on board the ship who make up the college faculty for the crew of more than 4,000. Kirtley taught social studies at North and South Medford High Schools for 30 years. When he was 54, Kirtley took an early retirement to pursue a goal of a doctorate in political science, and he attended Idaho State University in Pocatello. He finished his dissertation last December and formally graduated in June. He's been looking for an academic teaching job at colleges. "There's just something about opening up young minds to new ideas," Kirtley said. He hadn't found a job and had started doing research on city government in Medford and decided that he was going to focus on writing for peer magazines throughout the winter. "As soon as I gave up the idea that I just had to teach, they were calling on the phone," Kirtley said. A dean at Central Texas College, which offers courses on bases and ships for the Navy, called and asked him to fly to the Carl Vinson. Kirtley said he spoke with his wife, who was "not happy, but supportive," and decided to take the job. Kirtley took physical exams this fall and waited for a security clearance before he got the OK from the Navy to go aboard. Kirtley leaves for his tenure on the ship on Dec. 31, flying first to Europe and then to the Middle East before catching a mail plane or a helicopter to the aircraft carrier. Kirtley will teach three classes twice a week for three hours apiece -- or 18 hours of in-class work. "My goal is to give them an idea of how the political system works on all three (government) levels," Kirtley said. He said he will also teach writing and learning skills that will be useful if his students pursue more education. He will have about 18 students in each class. All will be excused from regular work duties to take the courses. He will live aboard the carrier and will stay in a stateroom -- basically officers' quarters -- which he will share with the other teachers. The carrier, which is normally stationed out of Bremerton, Wash., is completely self-contained, with two nuclear reactors, a hospital, a newspaper and the college classrooms. Kirtley said the carrier is constantly surrounded by a small fleet of other ships. As far as he knows, Kirtley said, the carrier will be stationed in the Gulf the entire time he's aboard. He said he isn't worried about the recent bombing strikes launched by the U.S. against Iraq. "It doesn't bother me a bit," Kirtley said. "Saddam's not shooting back." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA