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Can fighting rust in virtual reality help the Navy fight rust in the real world?
That is the hope behind an Educational Partnership Agreement (EPA) recently signed between Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division (NSWC PHD) and Glendale Community College (GCC) to use virtual reality (VR) to teach students corrosion control and related skills that support combat readiness.
NSWC PHD maintains educational partnerships with other colleges, and recently worked with Clemson University in South Carolina on a research program to develop corrosion control VR training for sailors. The GCC agreement would broaden this with training to prepare students for technical military or civilian careers straight from community colleges, said Alan Jaeger, manager of NSWC PHD’s Office of Research and Technology Applications.
EPAs stem from a 1990 federal law that directs Department of Defense (DOD) facilities to partner with schools to encourage study in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. These agreements enable NSWC PHD to share information and personnel with schools at all education levels, and promote the command as an attractive potential future employer.
The Glendale EPA came about when Jaeger and a colleague pondered related issues from different perspectives and arrived at the same solution.
Jaeger, who administers the command’s EPAs, was familiar with GCC’s state-of-the-art Virtual Reality Center, and envisioned a program there to teach corrosion control. Meanwhile, Armen Kvryan, the command’s corrosion lead, wanted technical training at GCC for students eager to begin military or civil service prior to completing college.
The two contacted Ryan Cornner, GCC’s superintendent/president, who embraced their ideas.
GCC’s proximity to Los Angeles means the school benefits from strong relationships with the film industry. Three years ago that led to a partnership between the school and Culver City-based Dreamscape Learn, a VR-education company founded by seasoned Hollywood VR professionals. The company merges storytelling, VR and conventional teaching to create next-level coursework, Cornner said.
A $4.5 million state grant funded the school’s VR lab using Dreamscape Learn equipment, and in 2023 the center opened — the first of its kind at a community college.
Students using the center’s VR tools sit in groups at desks and wear eye-covering headsets with screens inside that display a virtual environment.
In the simulations, software renders students as avatars. Cameras placed along the lab’s walls track students’ body motions as they sit at their desks. This enables students to virtually “move” around in the virtual world. Due to the cameras, Cornner said the Dreamscape Learn technology creates a sense of full immersion with students wearing no more equipment than headsets.
“It’s spectacular,” he said. “You feel like you are actually there.”
He said VR as a learning tool offers more than gimmicks. He cited a 2022 study conducted at Arizona State University on courses that used the same VR software used at GCC. Study results showed student grades averaged 9% higher in courses incorporating VR, compared to grades from students in conventional courses.
How could this benefit NSWC PHD? Kvryan said virtual reality training can help address a relentless real-world naval problem: rust. Corrosion costs the U.S. Navy billions of dollars per year in repairs and fixes to ships and other naval vessels, he said. What’s more, the fleet’s average ship age continues to increase, exacerbating the problem. Meanwhile, personnel knowledgeable about corrosion tend to be older and keep retiring, leaving a gap to fill.
“The knowledge is escaping us,” Kvryan said.
He and school staff plan to explore incorporating VR technology into physical science coursework, in segments applicable to naval and DOD situations. He wants to start with a surface chemistry module, focused on corrosion. It would use VR to simulate shipboard environments to train students to identify and address corrosion. That could dramatically cut costs associated with training on actual ships at sea, Kvryan said.
Kvryan and Cornner both consider GCC ideal for this EPA, due to the school’s reputation for robust STEM programs. The school attracts high numbers of students to those subjects, many of whom continue their education at the University of Southern California and University of California, Los Angeles. Cornner also noted the school’s large population of active military and veterans. It averages 200 students at any given time, and many come to study STEM subjects.
Cornner said the EPA is one way that the school “brings a new generation of support” to its military and veteran student population. Kvryan said these students often demonstrate talent, discipline and a hunger for hands-on experience. Many also express interest in finding STEM-related jobs that don’t require a four-year degree. Kvryan added the EPA could help train these students to get the jobs they want and would excel at.
Closer to home, he sees these students as ideal candidates for careers at NSWC PHD and hopes to create an intern program for GCC students to work summers at the command.
“At Port Hueneme (Division) we do good research, but a lot of what we do is hands-on engineering,” he said. “So, I think this will open up a really beautiful pipeline of interested students.”
Eventually, he envisions a certification program at GCC that students can list on their resumes to give them an advantage in the job market.
The EPA will remain in effect for three years, with the option open to continue it further.
| Date Taken: | 04.09.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.09.2025 19:26 |
| Story ID: | 494976 |
| Location: | PORT HUENEME, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 138 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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