Photo By Kimberly Menzies | Spc. Ronnie D. McNulty, a human resource specialist with the 94th Army Air and Missile...... read more read more
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii — Soldiers with the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, U.S. Army Pacific, participated in the 94th AAMDC’s first ever combined rank sexual harassment/assault response and prevention board, April 24, 2015, at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii.
The question and answer board is the first at the 94th AAMDC to be presided over and attended by both officers and enlisted Soldiers.
“The idea of a SHARP board was originally thought up by Sgt. Maj. Woodley, while he was part of Task Force Talon in Guam,” said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Sherrie Campbell, the 94th AAMDC SHARP Program manager. “For our first official 94th AAMDC SHARP board we wanted to progress to the next level, think outside the box.”
The 12 board candidates, consisting of warrant and commissioned officers, non-commissioned officers and enlisted Soldiers, were asked to submit a traditional board packet, a written essay that described what SHARP means to them personally and to participate in a question and answer session. This portion of the board was preceded over by five board members of varying ranks.
“Sexual harassment and sexual assault affects all of us regardless of our rank,” said Master Sgt. Anthony Wyatt, the 94th AAMDC Sexual Assault Response coordinator. “It would only be fair if a variety of ranks would be sitting on the board and competing. When Soldiers see their senior leaders, officers and [noncommissioned officers], participating, it is leading by example in its purest form.”
“It is a way for all leaders on any level to teach and engage all 94th AAMDC Soldiers on SHARP in an innovative way,” adds Campbell.
The Soldiers were asked several SHARP related questions by each board member. There were policy questions with answers directly from Army Regulation 600-20, Chapters 7 to 8 and situational questions in which Soldiers were asked to give examples of how they might apply their answers.
“This was a great way for our leaders to test true legitimate understanding of the topic,” shared Pfc. Brandon Besser, a force management administrator with 94th AAMDC who participated in the board. “It is important for us to really know what we are talking about.”
“The individual who scores the highest after the conclusion of the board will be able to use their knowledge as a teaching tool for other future board attendees as a member of future SHARP boards,” said Wyatt.
This board also gave the 94th AAMDC Ready and Resiliency Team an opportunity to gain feedback from Soldiers on possible ideas to improve or make SHARP training more effective.
“When Soldiers were asked if they had anything else they would like to share with the board, they took it seriously,” said Campbell. “Soldiers shared their ideas with us. Suggestions we can implement to make our training more effective for all the Soldiers, at all levels.”
SHARP remains a U.S. Army priority and is also a top priority for the Soldiers of the 94th AAMDC.
“This also shows everyone how serious this subject is to us,” said Besser. “We created a board specifically for this one topic.”
“As much as we talk about sexual harassment and assault, it hasn’t entirely gone away,” shares 1st Lt. Gabrielle Tally, a human resource officer with 94th AAMDC and panel member of the SHARP board. “We take it very seriously and are working to do our part to eradicate it.”
“Yes, we have an understanding that sexual harassment and assault is a moral issue but it is also a danger issue,” Tally continues. “No one wants to come to work and feel unsafe because of the continual possibility of danger. I personally want to do whatever I can to ensure that Soldiers, male and female, do not have to live with the fear for their personal safety. Education is a major component making this positive change possible. It is motivating to be part of that change.”
| Date Taken: | 04.24.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 05.04.2015 21:51 |
| Story ID: | 162222 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HI, US |
| Hometown: | REDDING, CA, US |
| Hometown: | ROBERTA, GA, US |
| Hometown: | TAMPA, FL, US |
| Hometown: | WINSTON SALEM, NC, US |
| Web Views: | 110 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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