Photo By Staff Sgt. Terry Rajsombath | Command Sgt. Maj. Robert Sturdahl, Commandant of the 243rd Regional Training Institute...... read more read more
The Rhode Island Army National Guard conducts Basic Military Police Course (BMPC) training for Soldiers from all across the U.S., to reclassify from their current military occupational specialty (MOS), into becoming a 31B Military Police (MP) Officer.
On August 7, 2016, the 243rd RTI, celebrated the graduation of 21 Soldiers from different U.S. Army components, various units, and military occupations.
“We had one active-duty Soldier, one reservist and the remainder being national guardsman from all over the country,” said Lt. Col. Ronald Tammaro, Commander of the 243rd Regional Training Institute.
Tammaro said that of the 21 graduating Soldiers from BMPC, five of those Soldiers are from Rhode Island.
“I was a 25P,” said Sgt. Paul M. Gormley, a prior active-duty Soldier and the distinguished honor graduate from the BMPC. “I was a Microwave Systems Operative Maintainer and I wanted to be a police officer.”
Gormley is assigned to the 772nd Military Police Company, out of Boston, Massachusetts. He served five years active-duty prior to joining the Massachusetts Army National Guard, then making the decision to reclassify as a Military Police Officer.
The BMPC consists of two phases, each phase conducting training for two weeks, culminating into a four-week course.
Throughout the course, while the RTI cadre conducted training, they themselves were being evaluated on their performance as instructors, by the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) evaluators.
“We were being evaluated by active-duty,” said Tammaro. “We came up meeting [their requirements] and doing very well. The instruction we use is TRADOC certified. So the standards that the National Guard used for training 31B reclassification are the same as active-duty.”
Tammaro said that the RTI achieved the score of one hundred percent and also the designation of the institute of excellence.
“It’s all a team effort,” said Tammaro. “It’s not one person, it’s my staff, my Soldiers, it’s my MP instructors, and it’s my state for giving me the equipment and money that we needed.”
Master Sgt. Thomas McCarthy, the Quality Assurance NCO for the 243rd RTI, said that the program of instruction (POI) for training comes from TRADOC, so their standards of training is no different from anywhere else in the Army; but what sets the RTI apart is the quality of their cadre.
“It’s the people that we bring,” said McCarthy. “Around 90 percent of our cadre are local police officers.”
As a member of the National Guard, RTI instructors have the ability to share real-world experience from their current civilian career, as well as their experiences overseas as Military Police Officers.
“Our instructors are civilian police officers during the day and they are MPs who have deployed,” said McCarthy. “So we take those real world experiences and teach them to our students.”
McCarthy said that each instructor at the RTI treats each Soldier as a member of his own unit.
“In a re-class, you treat the student as you want to be treated,” said McCarthy. “Bring them in and mold them.”
Gromley, the distinguished honor graduate, said that he was happy to be going home and finishing the background portion for the Boston Police Department.
He said that he formed a close-knit bond with his fellow classmates and enjoyed his time training at the RTI.
“I found the course to be the best military school I’ve ever been to,” said Gromley. “The cadre are very knowledgeable and very professional. I would recommend the school to anyone.”
| Date Taken: | 08.11.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 08.11.2016 16:29 |
| Story ID: | 206837 |
| Location: | CRANSTON, RI, US |
| Web Views: | 737 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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