Photo By Staff Sgt. Tina Villalobos | CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait — Sgt. 1st Class Robert Stoltzfus (left) and Staff Sgt....... read more read more
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CAMP BUEHRING, Kuwait—Rows of white, empty fold-out chairs awaited 139 graduates of the U.S. Army’s Basic Leader Course (BLC), as they ceremoniously entered amid a crowd of at least twice as many troops. The course, offered to qualified soldiers deployed across the greater Levant, is among the milestones required to propel soldiers from junior enlisted, to the Army’s non-commissioned officer (NCO) ranks. Two soldiers from the 28th Infantry Division demonstrated drive and intensity, typical of the Iron Division, when they graduated, Class 18-702, April 5.
“It was an honor for me to attend this graduation ceremony to watch two of my soldiers, Cpl. Matthew Haberle and Cpl. Xavier Isley, graduate from the Basic Leader Course,” said Jeremy Strathmeyer, Command Sgt. Maj., Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 28th Infantry Division. “They both performed very well, and one of them earned the Commandant’s List, which reflects proudly upon our battalion!”
The three-week course is for all military occupational specialties and encompasses the basics of sound and timely decision making, analysis, leadership, critical thinking, teaching and training, land navigation, map reading, drill and ceremony, as well as war fighting tactics.
Guest speaker, Sgt. Maj. Kevin Gaiser, support operations, 135th Sustainment Command (expeditionary) imparted sound advice to these new graduates.
“Listen to those people that are around you. Listen to the people that you work with and listen to the people that you work for,” said Gaiser. “But remember your Army Values –that’s going to get you wherever you need to go, not just in uniform, but in your life. Those are the things that you’re going to teach people. Those seven things are going to get you through anything. You’re in the leadership business now.”
Cpl. Matthew Haberle, intelligence analyst, 28th Infantry Division, and Commandant’s List selectee, took those words to heart and counted them among the most valuable lessons he learned during the course.
“The best advice I received here was to listen to those both above and below me,” said Haberle. “You’re still learning as a leader. Just because you’re a sergeant doesn’t mean you can’t learn from your lower enlisted as well as those above you. So, while you’re also teaching those below you and working to make them leaders, you’re still learning from them as well as the sergeants and officers above you.”
Gaiser cautioned the graduates to ensure their future decisions as leaders are always legal, moral, and ethical, and to be leaders worthy of followers.
“Just remember, as leaders, as junior NCOs you have statutory authority and you have statutory respect,” said Gaiser. “The code and the law say you are going to be respected as junior NCOs, but you’ve got to earn that personal respect. People are going to follow you, because the rules say that they have to. You’re going to lead people because they want to follow you. You are going to want to make people want to follow you.”
Integrity and equal opportunity were important course elements to Cpl. Xavier Isley, intelligence analyst, 28th Infantry Division.
“The most valuable advice I learned in this course is to lead with integrity, keep your morals high and your values intact,” said Isley. “Also, we learned about Soldier 2020. I hadn’t even heard about it until coming here. Soldier 2020 is about putting soldiers into jobs, regardless of factors, such as; male, female, anything like that—as long as they can accomplish it.”
Master Sgt. Otoniel Rivera, Chief of Training, NCO Academy, USARCENT, recommended future students of the basic leader course come prepared for the challenges and be ready to learn.
“I would advise our future student soldiers to seek out good leaders that lead by example, and lead from the front,” said Rivera. “Future students need to make sure they’re within all Army standards—that includes passing their Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT), and making sure they’re within Army height and weight standards. As soldiers, we need to be fit, have a good presence, and good military bearing. When they come here, we will take care of them and we will teach them what they need to know.”
While technical and doctrinal competence is always extremely important, Gaiser advised the graduates to make sure their character is always on par with their capabilities.
“You can teach competence, but you can’t teach character,” said Gaiser. “Competence without character is going to get you in trouble as a leader, every time. Never accept competence over character. Character is key. Everyone here knows that, or you wouldn’t be here.”
Although only 20 percent of these soldiers were selected for the Commandant’s List, according to Donna Ortiz, Commandant, Command Sgt. Maj. NCO Academy, USARCENT, it was not for a lack of effort.
“The most remarkable thing about this cycle of students was their energy,” said Ortiz. “I just love it. They’re focused and they’re driven. They want to not just pass the course, they want to excel at the course. They want distinguished honor grad, and they all fought for it. It’s great to see that energy from our future leaders; that they really want to do well and be the best.”
| Date Taken: | 04.13.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 04.13.2018 08:59 |
| Story ID: | 272944 |
| Location: | CAMP BUEHRING, KW |
| Web Views: | 520 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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