Photo By Monica Wood | The trainee ambassadors of C Battery, 1-79th FA Battalion discuss ways to be better...... read more read more
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FORT SILL, Oklahoma (May 17, 2022) — A basic training battalion is changing the way trainees deal with corrosive behaviors — with an ambassador program that could change the Army.
1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery started the ambassador program 15 months ago and selected volunteer trainees to learn the programs available including Sexual Harassment and Assault Response Program (SHARP), Equal Opportunities (EO), Military Resiliency Training leaders and suicide prevention and help their fellow trainees deal with three corrosives —sexual harassment, sexual assault, racism (including extremism and sexism).
“The ambassador program is a values-based program. Volunteer trainees are chosen as ambassadors and receive training on dealing with the corrosives and helping their peers,” said Lt. Col. Ryan Pursel, battalion commander, 1st Battalion, 79th Field Artillery. “They are not part of the solution — they are the solution — because we're going to grow future leaders who have the culture embedded in their being. Then as they become noncommissioned officers, and senior noncommissioned officers, this stuff stops.”
With this program, it becomes a peer-led situation where the command team is already the EO, SHARP and resiliency programs point of contact. The ambassadors, who are chosen around week three, are interviewed by the command team to find out more about their character and why they are volunteering for the duty, said Pursel.
“They serve — they raise their right hand to serve in the United States Army. They're out there already and they are morally willing to do it,” he said. “We just empower them by telling them ‘as an ambassador, you're going to be there for your battle buddies in case something happens. You're not out looking for things, but you are the ones in case a drill sergeant isn't approachable.’”
The ambassadors train on all programs in place to protect their fellow trainees and provide their peers with clear, accurate information for reports of bullying, hazing, discrimination, depression, anxiety, sexual assault and sexual harassment, and refer them to the appointed support staff for additional information and reporting.
“Our battalion is completely committed to this program and it has become the culture of our battalion. We are seeing other battalions throughout Fort Sill pick up their version of it,” said Pursel. “This is a commander’s program. Every commander has the ability to change it and modify it. The intent here is to prevent harmful behaviors.”
Pursel said 20,000 basic trainees graduate from Fort Sill each year. “That's huge for the rest of the Army learning about this program which is changing the culture. Those 20,000 Soldiers are going out to different units. They will become leaders in their units and have the ability to change and change the way people are thinking.
“That’s the sphere of influence that this small program will have. Each battery doesn't realize the impact that it's having on the Army after they have these conversations, or the conversations the ambassadors are having in the base with the other trainees, because even if they're not taking part in the conversation, they're still hearing about it,” said Pursel.
Staff Sgt. Paige Louque, chief senior drill sergeant, 1-79th FA Battalion, had the idea to make some of the trainees in 434th Field Artillery Brigade ambassadors to their peers. The ambassadors have conversations with other trainees and provide their peers with clear, accurate information or an ear to listen if they want to talk about issues.
“Harmful behaviors like assault, harassment, extremism, racism and suicide have no place in the Army,” said Louque. “Those actions can erode our Army and can erode our team cohesion. We are trying to build a new culture. It just encourages them — regardless of the action that has taken place — to go to the leader and be able to trust that it is going to be resolved. The ambassadors are there for the trainees if they do not feel comfortable talking to a drill sergeant, or they just need someone with whom to talk.”
Louque said when she was in basic training, she knew about the programs, which were in place if something happened, but she didn’t know anyone in authority.
“We encourage reporting, we want trainees to report. We want them to feel confident leaders will take the take action if something's going wrong,” said Louque. “I think the biggest point of this program is sharing knowledge and listening to a peer.”
The ambassadors have weekly meetings with the EO and VA representatives and learn to foster a healthy work environment in their approach to corrosives. They are the first step in prevention and intervention.
“We're finding out firsthand, they're becoming more of a team because they're not allowing those behaviors to exist, right in the first four weeks of training where, before in the Army, we didn't talk about that at all. We talked about the mission, rifle marksmanship and training,” Louque said.
“It is preventative in nature and it works hand-in-hand with the Army's initiative for This is My Squad, we've even kind of adopted the logo and some of the pamphlet information as well,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Justin Stewart, battalion command sergeant major. “It is changing the culture in the units; I have absolutely seen that with the cadre.”
Stewart said there has been a shift in thinking from the cadre themselves and now the locker room talk — jokes and inappropriate behavior — doesn't exist anymore.
“I think we don't have a lot of cadre problems because people feel welcome in the organization at the permanent party level,” he said. "We're seeing tighter knit teams, more welcoming to new members, permeated in everything from sponsorship of new arriving permanent party members, and how they're inculcated into this battalion’s culture.
A’Noe Martin is a trainee and an ambassador with C Battery, 1-79th FA. He feels the ambassador program helps other trainees to express themselves openly.
“It can be hard if you're doing something new or different and don’t have anyone to talk to, so I do find myself being more an ear for other trainees. It makes them feel less estranged from everything,” said Martin. “Every night in the bay, we all gather and tell each other how our day was before we go to sleep. We keep it very positive.”
Martin said they have days where it feels like it is every man for himself, but most of the time they work together as a team because that's the only way to succeed together.
To see more pictures of the ambassadors, check out the flickr photo album at https://www.flickr.com/photos/fortsillcannoneer/albums/72177720298877793.
| Date Taken: | 05.17.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 05.18.2022 11:39 |
| Story ID: | 420985 |
| Location: | FORT SILL, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 151 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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