Allowing foreign military officers to study in the United States has proven beneficial to this country and its military, a Fort Leavenworth official told the Lawrence Noon Rotary Club on Monday.

Foreign officers who spend a year studying at the Army fort’s Command and General Staff College learn more than just American military doctrine; they also learn about the American way of life, said Michael Brettman, director of the Field Studies Program in the college’s International Military Student Division.

Since 1894, 26 foreign officers who studied at the college have gone on to be presidents or prime ministers of their countries and a few hundred have become other high-ranking officials, Brettman said during the club’s luncheon at the Holiday Inn and Convention Center, 200 McDonald Drive. Other officers have served as commanders in military organizations such as NATO.

“That is a tremendous leverage for our chiefs of staff,” Brettman said.

The officers see a mixture of American society.

“We take them to the very nice places in Kansas City and we take them to the very bad places,” Brettman said. “We have to be able to show them the good and the bad and give them a balanced view of the United States.”

The officers also visit local and state government organizations and take a trip to governmental institutions in Washington, D.C.

Civilian volunteers work with the officers and their families in dealing with everyday issues such as getting a used car and a driver’s license, Brettman said.

The officers’ experiences with average Americans pays dividends, Brettman said. He noted an officer from Oman who said people there think Americans hate all Muslims. He has learned that is not true and promised to dispel that myth, Brettman said.

“That, in a nutshell, is what this program is all about,” he said.