Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

1988

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Abstract

Purpose of the study. The Community College of the Air Force (CCAF) is an innovative concept which combines technical Air Force education and training with traditional college courses from civilian institutions to produce Air Force career-relevant Associate of Applied Science degrees. In the developmental stage, CCAF was criticized as being an economically inefficient method of achieving the educational goals established by the Air Force. This study investigates various methods of microeconomic analyses that could be used to determine the degree of economic efficiency of CCAF. Methodology. The use of the cost-benefit, cost-effectiveness and cost-utility methods of analysis were considered but dismissed as being inappropriate because of the difficulty in assigning monetary values to the benefits of CCAF. Also, these methods are usually applied to assist the decision maker in comparing alternative approaches. It was determined that there were no direct alternatives to CCAF. The economic method of analysis used in this study is the breakeven analysis which compares costs and revenues--the breakeven point being the point at which costs and benefits are equal. The cost function was developed using the costs of the administrative center of CCAF. The revenue function was determined by the student credit hours generated and the average cost of a student credit hour. Conclusion. The analysis indicates that in measuring CCAF's productivity either by total student credit hours generated or by the number of hours used by graduates in obtaining the associate degree, the CCAF concept and operation is economically efficient. As a corollary, it is determined that CCAF not only does not cause a loss in revenue to the civilian sector of education, it generates substantial additional revenue. Recommendation. Because of the success that the Air Force has experienced in motivating students to complete career-relevant Associate degree programs and the economic efficiency of the CCAF concept, the Department of Defense should consider having the Army and Navy join the Air Force in a Community College of the Armed Forces (CCAF).

Extent

149 p.

Comments

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1988.|College of Education|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Thesis (Ed.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1988.

Identifier

FADT11916

Format

pdf

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