Leadership Fort Sill mentor Joy Feldman, who is the Directorate of Training Development and Doctrine's Faculty and Staff division chief, meets with her mentees Oct. 16, 2020, in Snow Hall. Leadership Fort Sill is a year-long program designed to strengthen the skills and network support of mid-grade level Department of the Army civilians at the Fires Center of Excellence and Fort Sill.

Joe Gallagher, Fires Center of Excellence and Fort Sill deputy to the commanding general, welcomes the 12 mentees to Leadership Fort Sill Oct. 16, 2020, at Snow Hall.

Mentors and their mentees mingle during a break Oct. 16, 2020, at the first session of Leadership Fort Sill. The rigorous leadership course for DA civilians will have them learn the intricacies of the installation, and meet with commanders and directors.

FORT SILL, Oklahoma (Oct. 22, 2020) -- If experience is the best teacher, then 29 Department of the Army civilians gathered Oct. 16 in Snow Hall for their first lesson in the third iteration of Leadership Fort Sill (LFS).

The year-long mentorship program is designed to help mentees improve their leadership skills, handle challenging situations, and progress in their respective careers. It also provides them with insight into the missions of the Fires Center of Excellence and Fort Sill.

“I cannot overemphasize the value of having a mentor,” said Joe Gallagher, Fires Center of Excellence and Fort Sill deputy to the commanding general, in his welcome.

Dr. Alvin Peterson Jr., FCoE and Fort Sill deputy chief of staff, said LFS is using the Japanese business philosophy called kaizen, or continuous improvement, as their guide.

“The research shows that individual performance is directly tied to the mentors we’ve had in our lives,” Peterson said. “We’ve made a conscious decision here to have a formal mentorship program. And quite frankly, we’ve picked the best and the brightest to be your mentors. They are all successful, senior DA civilians who have a lot of experience.”

Student Jessica Tripp, 30th Air Defense Artillery Brigade training specialist, said she applied for LFS to get better at collaborating with clients and stakeholders to meet the intent of her brigade’s mission.

“This is my first DA civilian position,” Tripp said. “My position is a little unique in that even though I don’t supervise people I supervise a lot of programs and processes.”

Mentor Greg Marcum, 428th Field Artillery Brigade deputy commanding officer, broke out the Fires Fifty axioms in his introduction saying his group of mentees will never waste good coffee, and that he will never be unreachable.

The other mentors are:

Robert Krieg, Directorate of Resource Management deputy director

Chris Haag, 30th Air Defense Artillery Brigade deputy to the brigade commander

Jim Miller, Department of Human Resources director

Jim Lucas, 434th Field Artillery Brigade deputy commanding officer

John Scotto, Multi-domain Targeting Center deputy director

Terry Braley, Directorate of Training Development and Doctrine (DOTD) deputy

Joy Feldman, DOTD Faculty and Staff Development Division chief

Teena Figueroa, Civilian Personnel Advisory Center supervisory human resources specialist

Jim Rikard, FCoE Operations, Plans and Training deputy director.