FORT HOOD, Texas -- The 215th Brigade Support Battalion "Blacksmiths," 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division is providing its junior Soldiers an opportunity to increase their knowledge and leadership skills by conducting a Junior Leadership Course here.
The two-weeklong monthly course was started a few years ago under direction of Command Sgt. Maj. Natividad Lopez, former Blacksmith command sergeant major, to prepare Soldiers for success in the Army's Warrior Leader Course -- a professional development school required sergeants, said Staff Sgt. Dwight Bullock, a Blacksmith water treatment specialist and senior instructor for the JLC.
"Soldiers need to prepare for the WLC by broadening their knowledge with skills necessary to make the Army a career," said Lopez, who hails from El Paso, Texas.
Knowledge gleaned from JLC includes learning the noncommissioned officer creed, performing proper drill and ceremony techniques, conducting physical training and land navigation, and an introduction to many Army regulations, said Bullock, a native of Atlanta.
"JLC helped me to understand leadership is the ability to influence others to accomplish a mission in the manner desired by providing purpose, direction, and motivation," said Spc. Jalea Berry, a chaplain assistant with 3rd BCT. "It helped me to understand that leadership is vital to the welfare of the unit and its Soldiers."
Additionally, JLC helps build on personal character by providing a positive look at confidence and self-esteem.
"JLC has benefitted the Soldiers in different ways, such as giving them confidence to speak in front of a group of people," added Bullock.
While JLC is a good start in helping Soldiers become leaders, the best practice to becoming one will always be practice, added Lopez.
"Soldiers need to be more involved in their unit's activities, such as leading their companies in physical training and upholding the Army standard," said Lopez.
Berry, who hails from Charleston, South Carolina, said she's starting now by leading Soldiers through her actions, not just words.
To date, almost 110 Blacksmith Soldiers have completed JLC, with approximately 10 percent of them graduating WLC as honor graduates.
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