Back to basics: Recruit and basic military training senior leaders gather to share information, ideas

  • Published
  • By Maj. Carla M. Gleason
  • 331st Training Squadron
JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO - LACKLAND --  Sixteen Army, Navy, Air Force and Department of Defense officials met at Joint Base San Antonio- Lackland for the Council on Recruit and Basic Training Conference to discuss training and basic entry-level recruit operations across the services, April 9 - 11.

After more than 10 years of close joint operations in the war-fighting arena, military members are coming together to take the communication lessons learned during military operations overseas and apply them closer to home; starting at the basics with entry-level enlisted military training.

Maj. Gen. Leonard Patrick, commander, 2nd Air Force, whose command authority includes Air Force Basic Military Training as well as technical training across the Air Force, hosted the first meeting of the council.

"If we can understand the dynamics of the other services, this will lead to methods we can use to address command issues as they arise," said Patrick. "Understanding not only the operations of the other services, but also their culture and history, is beneficial to all of us as we move forward."

The joint, three-day meeting, which focused on topics from nutrition and physical training to resiliency and DOD sexual assault awareness initiatives, was the first of its kind in recent memory.

"We have gone to great lengths to visit the other services in the recent past, but this is better," said Army Command Sgt. Maj. John Calpena, command sergeant major for Initial Military Training Center of Excellence . "Instead of fighting to find information, we have an opportunity to apply this joint mindset and learn from each other here. We can really grow immensely when it comes to entry-level recruit training."

Collaboration with other services and integration of the lessons learned in conventional operations could improve the development of future recruits by leveraging efficiencies and benchmarking best practices between the services.

"The real value in this type of forum is to have the exchange with the other services; what you can learn, and what you can take away," said Maj. Gen. Bradley May, deputy commanding general for Initial Military Training Center of Excellence.

The other service representatives agreed and noted one of the most difficult things to change is the culture of training. Efforts are constantly underway to provide commanders with resilient service members in the safest, most efficient manner possible. The services endeavor to develop thinking, agile warfighters who are able to integrate into the team quickly and perform in the face of an ever-changing battlefield.

"The fact is the mindset behind entry-level training has changed for all services across the board," said Dr. Laura Munro, training advisor at Air Force BMT. "The difference is between compliance and commitment. Today we need commitment; it makes for a much better service member in the long run."

"In the current climate of cost-savings, efficiency and results-oriented actions, sharing information on day-to-day operations and training methods makes sense," said Rear Adm. Dee Mewbourne, commander of Naval Service Training Command. "We can continue to learn and improve in the areas that are common to us all, which will be an incredible value as we take these ideas back to our own service and see what we can improve."

Ideas like Avatar-based computer training and new training aps, changes in trainee nutrition education and even sexual assault prevention strategies were just some of the issues discussed. As a result, each service walked away with information, ideas and recommendations to improve military training.

Air Force BMT is held at Joint Base San Antonio- Lackland. IET for the Army occurs at Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga., Fort Jackson in Columbia, S. C., Fort Knox, Ky., Fort Leonard Wood in St. Robert, Mo., and Fort Sill in Lawton, Okla. The Navy's Recruit Training Command is at Naval Station Great Lakes, Ill. Combined, these bases and commands transform every civilian volunteer into basically trained Airmen, Soldiers and Sailors.