FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Jan. 27, 2011) -- If you are a new Department of Defense civilian hire, you will find yourself in Green Training. This newly modified two-day program is geared toward helping civilians understand the military way of doing things.
"Currently, the stipulation is anyone who was hired as of fiscal year 2011 (will attend training)," said John Rose, chief of staff of faculty development. "It's an introduction for new hires into the Army organization."
The U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command mandated this
program approximately two years ago. Originally, the class was scheduled on a volunteer basis and only for those who had never worked with the military.
"The original program was for people who were non veterans, but from that guidance, it has transitioned into what it is here at Fort Leonard Wood," Rose said.
Green Training helps new civilian hires as well as prior service veterans and even contributes information to those who previously worked on Fort Leonard Wood and have only recently returned.
"The course is geared toward new civilians who know nothing about the Army, but that is only part of it. The other part of the course is geared to what is currently on Fort Leonard Wood, and what Fort Leonard Wood's role is in the Army," Rose said. "The government is always changing and evolving, so what your mission was, may not be what the current mission is."
Day One: Green Training begins with a brief orientation to the class and a test to determine new hires' level of knowledge regarding the military. Once done, they are required to attend a graduation ceremony at Baker Theater in order to better understand the basic formalities a Soldier undergoes while in training.
At briefings held after lunch, Command Sgt. Maj. Corbly Elsbury, Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and Fort Leonard Wood Command Sergeant Major, briefed The Army Mission, which consists of learning the inner workings of a Brigade Combat Team and how the Warrior Area of Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan are spread over Command Observation Posts, Forward Operating Bases and Patrol Bases. He also discussed the spectrum of a deployed Soldier's mission verses the mission of a Soldier in training and how civilians, whether they realize it or not, affect those missions.
Elsbury ended his brief on a high note. "Without you, we don't move. As a civilian work force, everything you do, every day, adds to the fight, because no matter where you work or what you do, you touch a Soldier every day," Elsbury said.
Mike Landers, Green Training course chief, informed attendees about the differences between being a civilian and being in the military. Some of those differences are: responsibility, personnel matters, ratings, disciplinary actions, work schedules and promotion procedures.
"The ultimate goal is to enable civilians to better understand how the Army works," said Lynetta Powell, instructional design specialist. "It's a dashboard look at what they do, day to day. Since we are part of this culture, we need to at least have a basic understanding of how it goes."
Green Training, day two, begins and ends with a tour of Fort Leonard Wood's diverse facilities. Tiffany Wood, MSCoE speechwriter, showed new hires facilities on Fort Leonard Wood, ranging from the 43rd Adjutant General Battalion where new Soldiers come to in-process to the U.S. Army Prime Power School at Training Area 244. Many know these facilities exist but few understand the inner workings of these organizations, officials said. Green Training provides that understanding and much more.
"The Army is more than just doing your job and going home, it's more of a culture. It's trying to get those people to understand a little bit about what is the culture of the environment that you are working in," Rose said.
Green Training is held every month depending on the number of new hires to Fort Leonard Wood.
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