Photo By Drew Shipley | CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait — U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Anthony Hutchins (left), a small group...... read more read more
CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait – Ten soldiers assigned to the 449th Combat Aviation Brigade, Task Force Spartan, successfully completed this year’s first cycle of Basic Leader Course at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, March 8, 2018.
Basic Leader Course is the first noncommissioned officer professional development system course, that presents soldiers with fundamental leadership skills to be successful at the next level.
“There were things I learned about myself,” said Spc. Stephanie Rodriguez, a signal support systems specialist assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 449th CAB. “I am stronger than my environment and I can depend on others.”
Rodriguez finished in the top 20 percent of her class allowing her to graduate on the commandant’s list. Making the list distinguishes soldiers from their peers for exceeding the standard, which is helpful for promotion.
Staff Sgt. Anthony Hutchins, a small group leader with U.S. Army Central Command’s Noncommissioned Officer Academy, mentioned some of the advantages soldiers have completing the course overseas.
“This [course] allows the soldiers to not fall behind their peers back at home station when it comes to promotion,” said Hutchins. “Another advantage the soldiers have is that they are already here on site. Back home, soldiers may be coming off a deployment or getting ready to go. The soldiers here are already in that everyday combat mind frame.”
The advantages of having BLC in theater do not come without difficulty for students and instructors alike.
“The main issue I experienced during class was speaking in front of people,” said Rodriguez. “The instructors were aware of this fear and they would have the entire class take deep breaths with me to calm down. It made speaking easier for me.”
“The staff here comes from places all over the country,” said Hutchins. “There has been a way we have always done things back home, [and] there has been a way another small group leader has done things where they are from. So coming together and developing and refining our training plan to meet the expectations for our soldiers is ongoing and will get better with time.”
The NCO Academy at Camp Buehring, Kuwait is currently conducting the second cycle of the year, which is scheduled to graduate April 5.
| Date Taken: | 03.08.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 03.29.2018 04:32 |
| Story ID: | 271041 |
| Location: | KW |
| Web Views: | 647 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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