Photo By Chief Petty Officer Stephane Belcher | 221121-N-PG340-1001 GREAT LAKES, Illinois (Nov. 21, 2022) Wanza Roberson, an office...... read more read more
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Meet Wanza Roberson! She is currently an office automation assistant in Freedom Hall at the Navy’s only boot camp.
Roberson, a Navy veteran from Chicago, has worked at Recruit Training Command (RTC) since 2007. She verifies the physical fitness assessment (PFA) results for recruits, and records if they pass or fail.
“I'm responsible for putting in the official PFA scores,” said Roberson. “I ensure that everybody at boot camp has passed the official PFA so that they have ready Sailors.”
She verifies and records the recruit division’s official PFAs and makeup PFAs. Her job includes updating discrepancies daily and ensuring only recruits who pass the PFA can graduate.
She also accounts for recruits who enter a hold status, or are removed from their division for remediation, and keeps track of their PFA status.
After work, she spends time with her dog, walking him and taking him to the dog park. And she unwinds in front of the television.
“It’s just me and my dog. I have a Beacker, which is a Beagle, Cocker Spaniel mix,” she explained. “He looks like Snoopy. He's pretty good; he’s my pal.”
She also enjoys listening to music and taking walks throughout the day. She puts in her headphones and walks laps to relax.
“I just love music,” she added. “I listen to music all day here to drown out the noise—so I can concentrate on what I need to be doing because there are so many conversations going on around me. And I’m constantly walking, got to keep these hips going.”
Roberson also talked about how the COVID-19 pandemic has made it difficult for groups to do physical training (PT) together after leaving boot camp.
“I don't know, with COVID and all of the other stuff that's happening, if it’s easier to slack off,” said Roberson. "When I went to “A” school, we still PT’d three times a week."
It’s critical for her to track the scores. She can detect trends that happen over periods regarding the number of recruits who pass or fail the PFA.
“In the 15 years I've been here, it's like you see the different waves of what's happening in society as to the type of recruits we get,” she said. “This society, these young kids are not as fit as we were when we came into boot camp, years ago.”
Roberson was a yeoman for 20 years before retiring from active duty and continuing to serve at RTC.
“I was just looking for a stable job,” said Roberson. “It seems like everything just keeps bringing me back to the admin side, so that's where I am.”
Boot camp is approximately 10 weeks and all enlistees into the U.S. Navy begin their careers at the command. Training includes physical fitness, seamanship, firearms, firefighting and shipboard damage control along with lessons in Navy heritage and core values, teamwork and discipline. More than 40,000 recruits train annually at the Navy’s only boot camp.
For more news from Recruit Training Command, visit www.navy.mil/local/rtc
| Date Taken: | 11.21.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 11.21.2022 13:43 |
| Story ID: | 433682 |
| Location: | GREAT LAKES, ILLINOIS, US |
| Web Views: | 119 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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