SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii - Across the nation, students of all ages are gearing up to head back to school, and many U.S. Army Garrison-Hawaii (USAG-HI) Department of the Army (DA) civilians are getting ready to do the same.
After more than two years of development, Hawaii Garrison University (HGU) will open its doors to its first students, launching the inaugural 2009/2010 school year, here, July 28.
The university, administered through the Workforce Development Division (WFD), is one of three initiatives that have been developed to address the training and sustainment of the DA civilian workforce in Hawaii.
HGU is the first of its kind, Armywide, offering local courses in personal and professional development and growth.
Unlike many academic institutions today, the university does not provide distance learning, online learning or self-study. Students can expect face-to-face, high-quality, in-class instruction, conducted during regular work hours at the Installation Training Center, Schofield Barracks.
Col. Matthew Margotta, commander, USAG-HI, said the university augments the current Army Civilian Education System (CES) making certain the concepts learned at CES are applied to jobs and work units.
"Establishing a local organizational university specifically for our garrison workforce addresses a professional development gap that will allow us to provide rich learning opportunities right here in Hawaii. Our ultimate goal is to grow and sustain a professional, competent and customer-focused workforce from within," Margotta said.
HGU is offering three programs from the current course year's curriculum - two from the leadership development program and one from the technical development program.
And with the first day of school right around the corner, prospective students are talking about the learning opportunities.
Rosaland Harvey, an Air Traffic Controller (ATC), who has been working for the garrison since 2007, said she is already registered for two HGU leadership courses beginning at the end of July and is ready to get started.
"I feel the Growing and Enhancing Leaders Programs will continue to prepare me for supervisory and managerial positions within and outside the ATC structure," she said.
Harvey has taken several DA courses and has high expectations from her time investment in HGU.
"I expect to learn how to think from a supervisor's perspective," she said, and stated that her goal is to prepare for promotions and to network with people who may be instrumental in helping her.
Jeffery Kam, the S3 operations officer for USAG-Oahu, is also currently enrolled in the Growing Leaders Program. His day-to-day responsibilities already require a great deal of managerial skills; yet, he hopes to learn more and expects to build relationships with team members from other garrison directorates.
HGU instructional team leaders Sarah Kalicki-Nakamura and Cindy Sakai, of Honolulu-based company TH!NK, LLC, plan to exceed student expectations and deliver results to the workforce and the garrison.
TH!NK was contracted to build the HGU curriculum from the bottom up, with goals set forth by Margotta and input collected from civilian workforce focus groups.
Kalicki-Nakamura said that unlike a standard four-hour workshop, HGU classes are designed to grow skills over a long period of time and with practice.
"Students can develop knowledge in four hours, but you can't develop a behavior," she said. "It's all about preparing yourself for the next level."
Kalicki-Nakamura and Sakai have been providing training, coaching and team building programs for companies in a variety of industries for more than 10 years.
Dave Vinton experienced TH!NK's up beat approach and training methods during a leadership class for Oceanic Time Warner Cable employees.
"TH!NK's leadership training classes were the first ones I actually felt were useful and real. They go beyond being a 'group hug-when-will-this-end-lecture' and instead engage and equip people with the needed tools for high performance."
More than 250 students are expected to attend HGU programs this year, and enrollment numbers and course offerings are expected to grow.
Future course offerings include a nine-day Adjunct Instructor Certification Program designed to train new HGU instructors.
Jocelyn Chang-Chuck, chief, WFD, has only one bit of advice for anyone who has not yet registered, "Your attitude determines your altitude. Don't get left behind, and invest in growing yourself today."
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