Photo By Staff Sgt. Daniel Garas | From left, U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Kelly Black, U.S Army Col. Anthony Dennis, and U.S....... read more read more
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U.S. Army Maj. Sara E. So, Commanding Officer of the 51st Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team, Michigan National Guard, was awarded the prestigious Gen. John J. Pershing Award during the change of command ceremony for the unit, where she assumed command from Michigan Air National Guard Lt. Col. Kelly Black, Friday, Oct. 13, 2023.
So received the award for her accomplishments during her enrollment in the two-and-a-half-year Command and General Staff Officer (CGSO) course. The Award is given to the top student from each graduating class. Soldiers must also achieve a minimum of 3.67 GPA in all sections of the school.
So was not only the top student, but she was also unanimous ranked number one in her peer evaluations and achieved straight A’s with a cumulative 4.08 GPA throughout the course.
“I hope to see Soldiers owning their own development,” So said. “A huge part of being a leader is self-identifying weaknesses and then putting in the time and effort to grow.”
That mindset that was clearly demonstrated by her efforts and attitude during the course and earned her the prestigious award.
“We had a number of interactions throughout the year, but I was primarily struck by her energy, professionalism and intense desire to learn. She never viewed this course as a check-the-block, like so many students do, and put forth every effort to try new ideas in her execution of organizational leadership,” said CGSO instructor, U.S. Army Lt. Col. Donald Erickson.
Maj. So dedicated over 20 hours a week to the course in, addition to still doing her full-time duties for the Michigan Army National Guard, as well as being a wife and mother. Maj. So would often complete her course work between the hours of 10pm and 2am.
“Maj. So is the epitome of a Soldier and scholar, whose professionalism, work-ethic, peer leadership, and academic standards set the tone for her entire staff group. She made all her classmates better and proved critical in the class achieving a 100 percent graduation rate, a rarity in distance learning,” read the nomination by Erickson.
More than 1,050 officers graduated from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff Officer Course at Fort Levenworth on June 9, 2023 at the Lewis and Clark Center. The graduating class includes mid-career officers from all American military services as well as 121 international officers representing 92 countries and 11 federal government civilian employees.
The Command and General Staff Officers Course develops war-fighting and adaptive leadership skills necessary for military officers to be proficient in Unified Land Operations. The College is an educational center of excellence renowned in the study of leadership, the conduct of joint and combined land warfare, and the application of Joint, Interagency, Intergovernmental, and Multinational organizations to synchronize all elements of power to achieve national objectives.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity that the Army has given me to further my job knowledge,” said So. “By attending this course, I am able to bring valuable knowledge back to my unit."
Established at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas in 1881, the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC) educates, trains and develops leaders for Unified Land Operations in a Joint, interagency, intergovernmental, and multinational operational environment; and advances the art and science of the Profession of Arms in support of Army operational requirements.
| Date Taken: | 10.13.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 10.23.2023 18:30 |
| Story ID: | 456117 |
| Location: | AUGUSTA, MICHIGAN, US |
| Web Views: | 226 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Michigan Soldier Earns Prestigious Gen. John J. Pershing Award, by SSG Daniel Garas, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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