Lance corporals take on leadership, ethics during seminar

Photo By Staff Sgt. Anne Henry | Lance Cpl. Joshua Nickson, right, leads a group of Marines as part of a five-day Lance Corporal Leadership and Ethics Seminar April 28 through May 2 on Camp Kinser. The course allowed the attending Marines to participate in mentor led, guided discussions with their peers. Nickson is an Atlanta, Ga., native and dispersing technician with Combat Logistics Regiment 37, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force.  

CAMP KINSER, OKINAWA, JAPAN

04.28.2014

Story by Cpl. Anne Henry 

III Marine Expeditionary Force   

CAMP KINSER, Japan - Junior enlisted Marines with various units across III Marine Expeditionary Force and Marine Corps Installations Pacific attended a five-day Lance Corporal Leadership and Ethics Seminar April 28 through May 2 on Camp Kinser.

The course allowed the attending Marines to participate in mentor led, guided discussions with their peers.

“They are formally sitting down together and discussing what our ethos means, our individual core values and leadership challenges,” said Staff Sgt. Jeremy T. Webb, the facility development coordinator with the Staff Noncommissioned Officer Academy Okinawa.

The program also discussed the “total fitness concept,” which is separated into mind, body, spirit, and social sections, according to Webb a Milo, Maine, native. The four parts are what balance Marines out as individuals, and address issues in areas that need improvement, he added.

The course itself addressed and encouraged solutions to issues being noticed across the Corps, according to Sgt. Maj. Laura L. Brown, the sergeant major of Marine Corps Base Quantico.

“These were issues that are ailing us as an institution, whether they be sexual assault, hazing or underage drinking,” said Brown, a San Antonio, Texas, native. “Many of these incidents occur in the first 24 months of service.”

The new program reinforced the essentials and skills that have been taught since day one at recruit training, according to Lance Cpl. Adam S. Benton, a marksmanship coach with Headquarters and Service Battalion, Marine Corps Base Camp Smedley D. Butler, MCIPAC.

“This course is designed to train lance corporals and reiterate things we have been learning since recruit training such as our ethics and values,” said Benton, a Granite Falls, S.C., native. “It ultimately prepares us to be leaders when we get promoted to corporal and join the NCO ranks.”

The five-day course was segmented into four different parts including counseling, coaching, mentoring, and discussions regarding “Leading Marines,” helping the Marines to balance their mind and spirit, according to Brown.

“This course starts the transformation from lance corporal to NCO,” said Lance Cpl. Megan Jameson, a motor vehicle operator with Combat Logistics Regiment 37, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, III MEF. “It makes us able to accept our responsibilities, and shows us how to separate ourselves from our peers once we get promoted.”

The fifth day of the course allowed the Marines to discuss scenarios they could possibly encounter when returning to their respective units.

“The Marines spent their fifth day discussing everything they learned and how to apply it to their day-to-day lives,” said Brown.

The five-day course left the Marines with a changed mentality, and ready to face future challenges, according to Webb.

“These Marines will leave this course having held beneficial conversations with their peers and being guided by mentors,” said Webb. “(We are) teaching them to be better leaders early on.”

• Date Taken: 04.28.2014
• Date Posted: 05.06.2014 01:35
• Story ID: 128831
• Location: CAMP KINSER, OKINAWA, JP
• Hometown: ATLANTA, GA, US
• Hometown: GRANITE FALLS, NC, US
• Hometown: MILO, ME, US
• Hometown: SAN ANTONIO, TX, US
• Hometown: VIRGINIA BEACH, VA, US