Jan. 15 is the deadline for Air Force noncommissioned officers to apply for a chance to pursue an advanced degree in science, engineering or management at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.

The Air Force Institute of Technology will select 10 NCOs to attend the 18- to 24-month program.

Airmen must be at least a technical sergeant, with a minimum of eight years in the service, 24 months on station, and three years retainability upon graduation, according to an Air Force news item. They also must have completed the appropriate skill-level upgrade and resident professional military education schooling for their rank.

More information on the program is available at: www.afit.edu.

Clinic at Iwakuni to offer mammogramsThe Branch Health Clinic at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, will offer mammograms from Jan. 12-16.

To schedule an appointment, call 253-3445. All appointments must be made through primary care doctors.

Iwakuni hosts academic counseling sessions

The University of Maryland University College Office at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, will offer college information counseling sessions on Jan. 15 and Jan. 16. The sessions will include private sessions with an academic advisor.

Thirty-minute slots are available from 8 a.m. to noon and from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Appointments are required. For more information, call 253-3392.

GW sailor arrested after altercationTOKYO — A USS George Washington sailor was arrested Thursday after a late-night scuffle, but prosecutors have not decided whether to file charges, officials said Monday.

Seaman Abdoul Karim Barry, 26, was arrested after punching a Japanese man, 37, in the face near Yokosuka Chuo station at about 11:25 p.m. Thursday, a Yokosuka police spokesman said Monday.

Barry admitted that he struck the man and was released Friday, police said. Charges were forwarded to the prosecutor’s office later that day.

The spokesman said police believe Barry, who had been drinking that night, did not know the man but that they were involved in an incident prior to the arrest.

Barry was arrested on the scene after the Japanese man called the police.

There were no serious injuries, the police spokesman added.

"It’s certainly disappointing whenever our sailors get involved in an incident such as this; however, the sailor was released without charges," said Lt. Cmdr. Bill Urban, USS George Washington spokesman. "It’s regrettable and we’re always mindful of our place in the community."

OHA surveys due for off-post troopsTroops who live off base in South Korea have until Jan. 16 to complete an online Overseas Housing Allowance utility survey.

Participation, while voluntary, "is critical to families receiving equitable" allowance to pay for utilities and recurring maintenance costs, according to a news item on the U.S. Army Garrison-Red Cloud Web site.

To complete the survey, participants must have actual bills or records of utility and maintenance expenses for 2008.

Participants must compute monthly averages for the expenses.

The site — www.perdiem.osd.mil/oha/survey/novoha.html — is run by the Per Diem, Travel and Transportation Allowance Committee.

The survey should take no longer than 40 minutes to complete.