Michigan State Normal College was a site for the Army Specialized Training Program. The Army Specialized Training Program ("ASTP") was established by the United States Army in December 1942 to identify, train and educate academically-talented enlisted men as a specialized corps of Army officers during World War II. Utilizing major colleges and universities across the country, the Army provided a four-year college education combined with specialized Army technical training over a period of one and one-half years to those enlisted men who were accepted into the program. The men of the ASTP were distinguished by the octagon shoulder patch insignia of the program which was worn on their uniforms. It depicts the lamp of knowledge crossed with the sword of valor -- an allusion to both the mental and physical capabilities of these specialized officers-in-training. This record group is a collection of materials from the Army Specialized Training Program at Michigan State Normal College. The World War II record group has been subdivided into several series: University Participants, Willow Run Bomber Plant, Campus, the Army Specialized Training Program, and Barry H. Alford. The University Participants series includes information pertaining to students, alumni, and faculty, and is composed of lists of participants, clippings, correspondences, G.I. Bill materials, and Japanese American student relocation materials.