Brigadier General Anthony (Mark) Stanich has accomplished much in his military career and his personal life. He commands the 404th Chemical Brigade of the Illinois Army National Guard, leading more than 1,800 soldiers. He has held numerous Guard command positions and earned more than a dozen medals and awards, including the Legion of Merit and Bronze Star.
Stanich has been married for 37 years, is the father of three, grandfather of five, and has been a public school teacher for more than 18 years. What’s next for this accomplished soldier, educator and family man? Stanich is now pursuing his master’s degree in homeland security at American Military University. He plans to finish this fall, just more than one year after he began his studies.
“I’m passionate about homeland security,” says Stanich. He led his Guard units through three major homeland security exercises last year, making them one of the nation’s most active in homeland security training.
His decision to pursue a degree was more personal, however. “Everyone in my family has a master’s degree,” says Stanich. “They’re not going to leave ol’ Dad behind.” Stanich, like many adult learners, has to juggle school among many other responsibilities.
“It’s very hard to find the time to study and that’s why I made it a goal of 12 months to complete the program,” he says. Because of his full schedule, the self-paced studying of online learning was the only option for him. He chose AMU mainly because of its regional accreditation as well as its homeland security program.
Stanich has taken up to 12 credits at once and takes advantage of AMU’s eight and 16-week courses. His study time follows a set schedule that meshes school, work and family commitments.
He begins his day with a workout at 5:30 a.m. On the drive to Romeoville High School, where he is the humanities department chair, he calls the 404th's chief-of-staff and the officer-in-charge to address issues and make assignments. During the school day, Stanich is responsible for the art and music departments, the library and junior ROTC. He also teaches painting, drawing, photography and pottery. “That’s my soft side,” he says.
Stanich gets home about 3 p.m., checks in again with his Guard unit, and studies until dinner. Afterward, he studies until midnight or so. Weekends are just as busy. As a brigade commander, he has Guard drills two or three weekends a month.
You won’t hear any complaints, though. He also doesn’t use his many command and personal responsibilities as an excuse to his professors. In fact, he tries not to mention his military rank to professors or fellow students. “I’m just another student,” he says. |
