A friend of mine asked which of the following is correct: “Crew Education and Training Centre” or “Crews Education and Training Centre.” He added that he felt that the first variant is correct and I told him that that’s what I feel too, but then he asked me why is the first version correct. So, I thought of asking the opinion of someone more competent than myself.
Are both the above variants correct? If not, can anyone please clarify which is not and why?
My near-native feeling strongly tells me that the first variant is the best and that using the plural is a redundancy in English, however I know that there is a best explanation, i.e. that “crew education” somehow implies in English “crews education”.
Also, you may be asking for trouble when you mix your desire for a “scientific explanation” with a grammar question - often it is just that the majority rules.
Here’s the answer I got from Paul Brians, Emeritus Professor of English at Washington State University, author of Common Errors in English Usage, to which I am subscribed:
So not a scientific explanation at all, despite it coming from an “Emeritus Professor of English.”
I on the other hand am trained as an engineer, so I often wonder why I hang around here so much. I’m sure Beeesneees and Alan are Emeritus somethings or other, or perhaps even “Presentitus” - err, where’s that Latin dictionary …