Photo By Lance Cpl. Brody Robertson | U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Anton Arifaj, a faculty advisor at the Staff...... read more read more
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CAMP HANSEN, OKINAWA, Japan – Staff Noncommissioned Officer Academy Faculty Advisor of the Year is a title given to the best Faculty Advisor out of all six SNCO Academies across the Marine Corps. This year, Gunnery Sgt. Anton Arifaj, the faculty advisor for the advanced school at the Camp Hansen SNCO Academy won in recognition of the exceptional service he provides across the Training and Education Command.
Arifaj has been an instructor at the Camp Hansen SNCO Academy since September of 2022, and during this time he has taught six Sergeant School classes and five Advanced School classes adding up to over 1,000 teaching hours. Along with being an instructor he has been the faculty advisor for 23 months.
“When I taught the Sergeant's School course, there were a lot of lightbulb moments for me, said Arifaj. “During my classes I’d have students coming up to me and saying, I've never had a GySgt. be so professional, which was disheartening a little bit, but also shows me that I was on the right path where, through my through my genuine approach and my leadership, I could influence Marines.”
Arifaj has always had a passion for teaching. In 2007 when he was a Lance Cpl. He led classes from how to operate machine gunnery all the way to financial management. Currently Arifaj plans to teach history at the collegiate level when he leaves the Marine Corps.
“What I bring to the academy is complete dedication to the student. That is my sole purpose for being here,” said Arifaj. “I come here with everything that I have. My mentality is that I owe III Marine Expeditionary Force and Marine Corps Installations Pacific everything I can do every day to make their Marines better, so when they go back to their units, they can be more effective in the region. I need to fulfill that every day and if not, I will be failing my job.”
The competition for Faculty Advisor of the Year pit Arifaj against over 60 faculty advisors spread across six SNCO academies, to include his own coworkers. The CG Education Command hold a selection board to nominate one individual for Faculty Advisor of the Year.
“I think the thing that separated me from my peers was the feedback that I got from the students, which is the end of course critiques,” said Arifaj. “I think that really beyond what I was physically doing in the classroom was that the feedback from the students painted a picture of the impact I had on them and their professional military education and how they view the Marine Corps.”
Arifaj said that during one of his classes he helped a Gunnery Sergeant enrolled in college and regularly follows up with them and assists with whatever they need.
Arifaj said that being genuine and caring about the students and their education is how you’ll succeed as an instructor. He makes his students the epicenter of his philosophy. He said he doesn’t necessarily worry about making Power Points, or being the best public speaker; the students will know if you actually care about the material and their learning.
Arifaj said that the SNCOs that go through these courses should be the type of leader who understands that they impact all levels of warfare by being a creative and critical thinker as well as someone who can solve problems.
“One of the first things we teach at every class here—for the Sergeants, Staffs Sergeants, and Gunnery Sergeants—is creative and critical thinking is a part of every curriculum because we know it is extremely important to do everything else,” said Arifaj. “You can't be a great Marine Corps planner, you can't be a great leader, unless you have creative and critical thinking.”
Arifaj molds critical thinking leaders by showing the same type of motivation he needs them to have. He said there is a symbiotic relationship between instructors and students; if he gives them energy they’re going to give energy right back.
“The students are a direct reflection of what I give them. So if I only give them 50%, they're probably only going to give me 40 or 25% back. So I need to give them 120% and then they can give me 100% back,” said Arifaj. “I need to make sure when I walk into that classroom nothing is more important than the education of the students that are sitting in that seat. Nothing in my life, nothing at home, nothing is more important to me than the time that I'm in front of them.”
Arifaj was selected for Master Sgt. and is scheduled to promote in September. His goal during his remaining time at the academy is to ensure his students understand the importance of being a Staff NCO.
| Date Taken: | 08.07.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 08.18.2024 19:57 |
| Story ID: | 478639 |
| Location: | CAMP HANSEN, OKINAWA, JP |
| Web Views: | 47 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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