Photo By Sgt. Spencer Rhodes | Drill Sgt. Marie Racine, a recent graduate of the Army Drill Sergeant School at Fort...... read more read more
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ORLANDO, Fla. - Don't unpack your bags for at least three weeks; you can be sent home over the smallest thing if you're not careful. It happens all the time, best to not unpack at first. These were words of advice by a noncommissioned officer to Staff Sgt. Marie Racine and other Soldiers in-processing for drill sergeant school. The coveted role however has been a long time ambition for Racine, a highly determined Soldier who never considered returning to the Florida Army National Guard's Recruit Sustainment Program empty handed as an option.
"I went there remembering that when it was all over I was going to be a drill sergeant. I knew what I was there for and what I would do to make it happen. So I immediately unpacked everything as soon as I could," said Racine, "to go in there with any other mindset wasn't going to help me prepare for success, and I had no intention of going anywhere soon, regardless of how hard it would be. I made it home for nine weeks. It proved to be far and away more challenging than my own initial basic training."
She returned to Florida at the end of May, as the state’s first female African-American drill sergeant, making an already exceedingly difficult accomplishment a historic one as well. Her achievement is one she has desired for quite some time, having first encountered a small taste from a former JROTC instructor.
"The crazy thing is that I've always wanted to become a drill sergeant since high school when our teacher was a former drill sergeant. I knew then that I preferred a disciplined and structured environment,” said Racine. “When I went to basic training my drill sergeants would joke that I was going to do this, and now I've gotten that opportunity."
Working in the Recruit Sustainment Program allowed her to introduce new recruits to some of her favorite aspects of the military, structure, discipline, etc. RSP is an Army National Guard training opportunity that has proven to increase success rates among recruits who ship to basic training and has greatly evolved since its first inception. While there will always be a certain shock that can't be fully understood until it's experienced, monthly RSP drills help lay down the basics for what to expect and what they need to know.
"Training Soldiers for what they need to know for basic training based on what we know and how they'll learn it from a drill sergeant when they ship out can be very different," says Sgt. 1st Class Roudy Simeone, an RSP readiness NCO. "Basic training drill sergeants train by the numbers, exactly as needed to a current standard. Since RSP is meant to prepare individuals for shipping out and succeeding, having Staff Sgt. Racine here in her new role better prepares recruits for what they'll actually encounter."
Everyone's character is different, with some being easier to gauge on first impression than others. As an active duty Guardsman she not only has to carry out her drill sergeant duties but meet the human resources needs for the recruits full time, and it doesn't take long to know where her heart and motivation lies. Enlisting in the Army in 2003, Racine started working with RSP in 2007 and will have spent the majority of her career thus far mentoring and training future Soldiers for basic training and a future in the military. Seeing the fruits of her labor in this regard is one of the most rewarding aspects of her position.
"Knowing that I'm setting the foundation for success in these recruits, and then seeing them later down the road being successful or having turned into a super NCO, it's an incredibly gratifying feeling. I have the opportunity to see Soldiers like that and know, 'I taught them what they needed to know, I contributed to their career,’" said Racine.
| Date Taken: | 07.25.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 07.27.2015 16:11 |
| Story ID: | 171249 |
| Location: | ORLANDO , FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 534 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Mentor returns to new recruits as drill sergeant, by SGT Spencer Rhodes, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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