FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. -- Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and Fort Leonard Wood commanding general spoke with leaders of the 4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade Monday to discuss the expectations of the current and future Army.
Maj. Gen. Mark Yenter spoke about the Army as a profession.
"The profession of arms is a definition of who we are expected to be," he said. "The true professional is someone who has not only made the decision to join the Army but has chosen to stick with it and has been selected to move through the ranks…to become a leader."
Part of being a leader, he explained, is identifying something that looks wrong and addressing the issue.
"If I walk around with my collar sticking up, should you be embarrassed or should I?" he said.
"We both should sir," said 1st Lt. Meghan Engleson, a platoon leader assigned to 13th Military Police Company. "I would be embarrassed for both of us."
Yenter encouraged the leaders to make respectful on-the-spot corrections.
"Profession of arms is the recognition that we have a responsibility to look out for, not only you, but for others," said Yenter.
He spoke about the consequences of not looking out for one another, including punitive action and ineligibility to re-enlist.
"He's right," said Sgt. Brittany Rapacz, 193rd Brigade Support Battalion retention specialist. "If you want to stay in the Army, you really have to think about the choices you make and how it will affect your career as a Soldier."
The Secretary of the Army announced in February that as part of the overall forces reduction all Soldiers in the grade of sergeant or staff sergeant not serving on an indefinite status would be considered unqualified for re-enlistment if their Official Military Personnel File contained a relief for cause Non Commissioned Officer Evaluation Report, a "no" in the part VI of the NCOER, a senior rater ranking of 4 or 5 in part V of the NCOER or failure to pass an NCO education system course.
In addition to the Army policy, Yenter said to expect that standard promotions will become more discriminatory.
"The bottom line is, we want to keep the best of the best," he said. "And we are doing that as we reconfigure our forces and shape the framework of the Army in accordance with changes in our national defense priorities."
Yenter said the Army's change will be unlike what most Soldiers have experienced during their service, but that change would be for the better.
"I wouldn't wring my hands about whether or not the future of our Army is going to be exciting," he said. "Because, trust me, it is."
Yenter encouraged the leaders to incorporate his message and to emulate the standard for new Soldiers to follow.
Social Sharing