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AFROTC wins MAJCOM award for field training overhaul

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Melissa Copeland
  • Air University Public Affairs
MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. --  The Jeanne M. Holm Center for Officer Accessions and Civilian Development Air Force ROTC field training team was recently recognized as one of Air Education and Training Command's winners for the 2009 Chief of Staff Team Excellence Award (CSTEA).

The Air Force ROTC program is offered in 144 universities in the U.S. and is the designed to recruit, educate and commission officer candidates. The commissioning source offers two or four-year programs for college students.

According to Air Force Instruction 36-2868, "the CSTEA recognizes outstanding team performance and shares best practices with the Air Force." Teams nominated for the CSTEA initiate a systematic approach for enhancing mission capability thus improving operational performance.

The ROTC award citation highlights the field training team for completing the most extensive and innovative field training overhaul in 60 years affecting 2,200 cadets and 1,700 officer trainees.

"The new curriculum employs realistic and relevant expeditionary training scenarios to evaluate performance and instill a 'warrior ethos' in future officers," according to the citation. "This self-initiated improvement to the congressionally-mandated program included revamping the Cold War-era curriculum and consolidating from disjointed locations to one center of excellence."

In relocating all field training camps to Maxwell, "the team championed game-changing improvements synchronized across accession sources, integrated with our commitment to the joint fight, focused on preparing leaders for asymmetric warfare, and codified as the cornerstone of a modern military education continuum," according to the citation.

Team applications were evaluated on organizational approach, execution and results. Organizational approach focuses on mission improvement identification, team selection and team support. Execution refers to the identification, selection and implementation of the solution to the selected process. The results were then required to be validated, sustained and standardized within the organization.

According to the most recent Air Force demographics snapshot, ROTC is responsible for recruiting 42.6 percent of Air Force lieutenants, making ROTC the leading commissioning source for the Air Force.

This year's field training is now in its second year at Maxwell with six scheduled training camps almost complete for the summer.

The 97th Air Mobility Wing Current Operations Team from the 97th Operations Support Squadron at Altus Air Force Base, Okla. was the other AETC 2009 CSTEA winner.