Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Stuart Posada | Meet Retail Services Specialist 2nd Class (RS2) Arrington Jenkins, a Recruit Division...... read more read more
Subscribe
Meet Retail Services Specialist 2nd Class (RS2) Arrington Jenkins, a Recruit Division Commander (RDC) at Recruit Training Command (RTC) Great Lakes, the Navy’s only boot camp.
Originally from Arlington, Texas, Jenkins’ journey in the Navy began eleven years ago with the desire to grow personally and professionally.
“After my senior year, I started thinking about going to college,” Jenkins says. “The idea of going into debt to pay for school wasn’t what I wanted. I talked to my mom about what I wanted to do, and she mentioned that I should speak with a recruiter. After I talked with them and thought about things, I realized the Navy would give me a lot of options. I’d be able to have some versatility with my career and be able to travel and see the world. At the end of the day, the decision wasn’t difficult for me.”
Prior to arriving at RTC, Jenkins was stationed on USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) in Bremerton, Washington, and the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Gulfport, Mississippi.
Jenkins’ primary duties as an RDC include transforming young men and women into smartly disciplined, physically fit, and basically trained Sailors. After graduating his seventh division, Jenkins will transition to Fleet Quality Assurance (FQA), where he will inspect and evaluate recruits and other RDCs to ensure they are following the correct military standards and training procedures.
For his duties as a Warrior Toughness instructor, Jenkins was recently awarded the RTC Junior Instructor of the Year and the Naval Service Training Command (NSTC) Junior Instructor of the Year for his outstanding instructional and leadership performance, and for personifying the meaning of personal excellence inside and outside of the classroom.
He attributes much of his success here at RTC, and in the Navy, to his upbringing.
“I’m lucky to have developed a strong work ethic during my childhood,” he says. “My parents were big on doing chores, helping around the house, and things like that. I also started working when I was 16 years old. While it wasn’t always easy, having those responsibilities from an early age and establishing a baseline level of discipline has really paid off during my career. I’ve seen a lot of my peers struggle with some of the basics in the fleet, and that’s put me ahead of the curve. I was also fortunate enough to have a mentor in Senior Chief Damage Controlman (DCCS) Sutherland who reinforced these traits and taught me to always perform my best even when the situation might not seem fair.”
Though Jenkins has accomplished many of his goals while at RTC, his duties aren’t without challenges.
“As an RDC, it can be difficult to see new recruits who are content with doing the bare minimum,” Jenkins says. “To me, this kind of attitude is a disservice to the Navy. No one is going to feel sorry for you or help you if you aren’t willing to use your potential and try to be better. Changing this mindset can be a challenge. On the other hand, when I am able to share my experiences and show the recruits in training what I’ve learned to get to where I am today, it can be extremely rewarding to watch them grow. Doing what I can to help is my way of giving back to the Navy for all of the good things that have come my way.”
Much of Jenkins’ drive to shape the future of the Navy can be attributed to his desire to continue the legacy of those who came before him.
“There’s a lot that you have to sacrifice while you serve in the military,” he says. “But it’s for an important purpose. For me it’s a way to honor and remember those who came before me by continuing in this tradition of leaving the Navy better than you found it. Those that have mentored or served alongside me and have since retired are important parts of what the Navy has become. Serving and doing my part is a way to honor them so that all of their hard work is not forgotten.”
Looking ahead, Jenkins has set ambitious goals for the rest of his naval career.
“I like doing out of rate tour assignments like this one because it forces you to learn something new. A special program tour at the White House is something I would like to do in the future. Making Chief one day is obviously a goal of mine as well, and if I do, I would like to attend the Senior Enlisted Academy (SEA).”
Jenkins continues to contribute to the Navy’s mission, upholding the values of service and dedication to inspire future Sailors as they join the fleet.
Boot camp is approximately nine weeks and all enlistees in the U.S. Navy begin their careers at the command. Training includes five warfighting competencies of firefighting, damage control, seamanship, watch standing, and small arms handling and marksmanship along with physical fitness and lessons in Navy heritage and core values, Warrior Toughness, Life Skills, 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: | 02.04.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 02.04.2025 11:01 |
| Story ID: | 490053 |
| Location: | GREAT LAKES, ILLINOIS, US |
| Hometown: | ARLINGTON, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 664 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Staff in the Spotlight – Retail Services Specialist Second Class Arrington Jenkins, by Marc Lindsay, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
