Photo By Terrance Bell | Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Lockett, a 244th Quartermaster Battalion platoon sergeant,...... read more read more
FORT LEE, Va. (Jan. 31, 2018) -- The 244th Quartermaster Battalion recently graduated the first class of enlisted leaders from its Guardian AIT Platoon Sergeant/Drill Sergeant Certification Program.
Seven platoon sergeants earned completion certificates for the two-day event designed as a primer to help noncommissioned officers better prepare themselves to lead Soldiers-in-training.
Sgt. Maj. JennyAnne C. Bright, the battalion’s interim senior enlisted leader, said the Guardian AITPS/DSCP was developed to help platoon sergeants deal with a wide range of problems and challenges affecting troops in the conduct of their duties and responsibilities.
“For example, on day one, they meet people from all the agencies a platoon sergeant will encounter during their tenure,” she said, “so, it’s designed to give those new platoon sergeants an overview on what they’re about to face.”
Advanced individual training platoon sergeants are akin to caretakers. In addition to getting students to their appointed places of instruction, they are responsible for helping them resolve issues related to pay, assignments, health care, family support and more. Platoon sergeants are responsible for the health and welfare of 40-60 Soldiers and, on average, will spend 12-15 hours a day engaged in such activity.
In addition to the Guardian AITPS/DSCP meet-and-greet segment, participants learn procedures for equipment issue and turn-in, Army Physical Fitness Test administration and training management. They also receive training pertaining to Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention, equal opportunity and fraternization. Overall, the program can be described as a localized familiarization training session, said Bright.
“We explain to them what they will experience from the time they pick up Soldiers all the way through graduation,” she said. “It is specific to Fort Lee.”
The first two iterations of the program were completed within the past two weeks, said Bright.
Sgt. 1st Class Leonard C. McGinnis Jr., one of three program leaders, said his Fort Lee experiences have taught him platoon sergeants “hit the ground” running and struggle in the process of trying to learn policies and procedures while juggling so many tasks.
“I was assigned here in June 2015,” he said. “When I got to my unit … I was thrown into the fire and was told I would get help along the way. You’re playing catch-up, wasting time on things you should already know. I wish there was a program like this when I first arrived. When you have something like this, you’re ready to rock-and-roll before you get to your unit.”
McGinnis said the most critical part of the course is the time blocked out to allow program leaders to share lessons learned.
“Having the three senior leaders give their experiences – what they’ve gone through while they were on the ‘trail’ – is key to setting up the incoming platoon sergeants for success,” he said.
Lt. Col. Daniel L. Horn, battalion commander, said the Guardian AITPS/DSCP could be considered the nucleus of student training here because so much is dependent on leader competency.
“It’s a center-of-gravity training program that is providing our cadre leaders with the tools they need to produce Soldiers who are value-added members of the operational force,” he said.
The Guardian AITPS/DSCP was born out of the experiences shared during a platoon sergeant training meeting last fall, said Bright.
“Someone brought up an issue about out-processing, and before the colonel or I could speak, another platoon sergeant started to share his ideas – what he went through and his shortcomings. Then, someone else chimed in. We noticed how the exchanges were helping them out. We figured if they had this information prior to taking on platoon sergeant, it would be a lot more useful.”
All new leaders assigned to platoon sergeant positions are required to attend the course, said Bright. Roughly 32 new noncommissioned officers are scheduled to undergo training before Oct. 1.
In addition to the Guardian AITPS/DSCP, all incoming platoon sergeants will undergo full drill sergeant training. Those currently in platoon sergeant positions will attend a two-week conversion course. The move follows a policy change to re-introduce AIT drill sergeants, whose positions were terminated here in 2008.
The first newly trained Guardian drill sergeants are scheduled to don their campaign hats in March, said Bright.
| Date Taken: | 01.31.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 01.31.2018 17:02 |
| Story ID: | 264186 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 192 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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