Tuesday May 27, 2014
What is it?
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, directed the creation of the new Soldier For Life website with a special section for the retired community to reconnect the Army to its 1.1 million Retired Soldiers and surviving spouses after Army Knowledge Online (AKO) was closed to them on Jan. 31, 2014.
What is the Army doing?
Transitioning the retired community away from AKO was necessary to modernize the Army network and meet cyber-security standards. However, the Army continues to provide Retired Soldiers and surviving spouses easily accessible retirement and benefits information and connections to Army resources that they need. Effective May 1, this information is accessible at the new Soldier For Life website.
What continued efforts does the Army have planned for the future?
The Army will expand the new website’s capabilities. A frequently asked questions database will answer many questions retiring and Retired Soldiers now ask installation and state Retirement Services Officers (RSOs). This will allow the RSOs to focus on the more complex questions that require their extensive knowledge of federal laws and Army policies. Also planned are a Retired Soldier blog – a forum for two-way communication of information and issues that affect the retired community – and a “white pages” capability that Retired Soldiers can opt into and connect with other Retired Soldiers.
Why is this important to the Army?
The new Soldier For Life website demonstrates that Retired Soldiers are part of the Army family. The Army relies on their expertise, their commitment to serve, and their contacts in towns across America to connect the Army with the nation it serves.
Resources:
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