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    Corporal’s Course class gets colorful lesson in teamwork, tactics

    Corporal’s Course class gets colorful lesson in teamwork, tactics

    Photo By Daniel Malta | A Corporal’s Course attendee shows his paint-splattered helmet after partaking in...... read more read more

    YUMA, ARIZONA, UNITED STATES

    01.26.2012

    Story by Lance Cpl. Sean Dennison 

    Marine Corps Air Station Yuma

    YUMA, Ariz. - Corporal’s Course: for some Marines, a mere promotion requirement, for others a period of enlightenment used for reflection of what it means to be a non-commissioned officer.

    Whatever their feelings, station Marines attending Corporal’s Course class 310-12 found themselves utilizing what they learned in their section during a house-clearing exercise at the station’s Special Reaction Team house off County 14th Street in Yuma, Ariz., Monday.

    For the past four weeks, dozens of Marines from various squadrons have been strengthening their NCO leadership abilities through courses including combat operations, sword and drill manual, and learning how to give primary military education classes.

    Corporal’s Course is meant to remind Marines that they’re, well, Marines.

    “Unfortunately, there’re times you forget the basics of being a Marine,” said Sgt. Cynthia Collier, a Corporal’s Course instructor and a native of Los Angeles. “(Corporal’s Course) breaks Marines out of that shell and brings them back to what they signed up for.”

    On a duty station that prides itself as a fantastic location for most anything aviation, room-clearing tactics are probably the farthest thing from most Marines’ mind. Class 310-12, the second to participate in such an event within the course, had those tactics at the forefront of their minds.

    Taught by members of the station’s Special Reaction Team, the Marines drilled first with dry runs, again with body and head armor, and finally combined their knowledge to surround and then clear the house with paintballs as their ammunition of choice.

    “The different things we don’t stress about in our day to day job, we apply them in this event,” said Collier, noting the more disciplined look of the class as the course nears its completion.

    “You’re applying the skills you learned and it builds up the camaraderie, so it’s a fun thing we send them off with,” she added.

    Course attendees also noted a change in their outlook of rank.

    “It’s building the foundation of being a noncommissioned officer,” said Cpl. Donald Carlson, a Corporal’s Course participant and a native of St. Paul, Minn. “It supplements the leadership skills we’ve already learned and backs it up with knowledge and training.”

    Class 310-12 is slated to graduate Friday.

    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 01.26.2012
    Date Posted: 02.23.2012 17:53
    Story ID: 84259
    Location: YUMA, ARIZONA, US

    Web Views: 94
    Downloads: 0

    PUBLIC DOMAIN