People on the move: Gunnery Sgt. Juan Lara Published March 18, 2009 By Bob Fehringer U.S. Transportation Command Public Affairs SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE Ill. -- Gunnery Sgt. Juan Lara enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1991 once he realized that higher education was not on his to-do list. "I joined the Marine Corps because I tried going to college and it was not for me, at that time," Gunny Lara said. "I also had two brothers that were in the Marine Corps so I said 'What the heck, I should follow their footsteps.'" A Marine Corps aviation operations specialist, Gunny Lara, 37, says his job has been "dealing with flight time for pilots, flight schedules and The Naval Air Training and Operating Procedures Standardization qualifications for the pilots. "As you pick up rank and move up," Gunny Lara continued, "your job changes to assisting the Operations Officer maintain the squadron's Training Exercise Employment Plan, working at Base Operations putting in flight plans for military aircraft, and also working as airfield managers. Since arriving at USTRANSCOM nine months ago, his duties have evolved even further. "My job here is being the senior enlisted advisor for JOSAC (Joint Operational Support Airlift Center)," Gunny Lara said. About working in the joint service environment Lara says "It's different. It's OK, once you get used to the other service's policies on evaluations, counseling, physical fitness, etc. I like that I can see how the military services and civilians work together to support the fleet. Although he once felt academia was not for him, Gunny Lara attends classes at Southwestern Illinois College as he works toward his associate's degree in education. He says he plans to earn an undergraduate degree in education and become a math teacher and eventually, a high school principal. "I'd like to become a teacher under the 'Troops to Teachers' program when I retire," Gunny Lara said. "I enjoy working with kids. My wife, Irene, and I ran a youth group, the Young Marines, when I was (stationed) at Yuma. We worked with 8 to 18-year-olds with attitude problems. Their parents could not handle them, but I know how to handle kids." With a little luck, the school children in Lara's future will follow in his footsteps. Gunny Lara, his wife and their children, Kristina, 14, Kristopher, 10 and Jonathan, 7, live in Scott Air Force base housing.