Civilians begin OTS leadership training

  • Published
  • By Christine Harrison
  • Air University Public Affairs
Enthusiasm is the word of the week from 25 Air Force civilians who make up the first class of the Civilian Acculturation and Leadership Training Program at Air University's Officer Training School. 

This pioneering group of 14 women and 12 men will complete a two-week course adapted from the OTS curriculum and walk away indoctrinated with Air Force leadership and core value lessons.

Prior to the start of the course, "We were contacted by about 20 students and everyone was excited and eager to get here," said Dr. Charles Nath, director of curriculum.

About a year ago, the chief of staff of the Air Force asked the Holm Center to develop a civilian course that mirrored OTS. Dr. Nath described the result as an OTS-like leadership development course for prospective Air Force civilian leaders.

"Because the OTS curriculum is military specific, we could not just pull it off the shelf; we had to adjust some of the lessons, such as our case studies, to make them more relevant," he said.

The students will take classes on leadership, team-building and communication, and the course culminates with a war game provided by Squadron Officer College.

"The war game is a new venture for us since OTS does not include a war game in its current curriculum - but that may change. If it works, we will consider putting it in the OTS and [Reserve Officer Training Corps] programs," Dr. Nath said.

Other additions to the CALT curriculum that are also not traditionally part of OTS and ROTC include blocks on supervising civilians, writing civilian performance appraisals and classes on budgeting.

Most of the students come from support career fields, such as contracting and personnel, but all were chosen from a select group of junior-level Air Force civilians. The selection criteria included graduates of the Student Career Experience Program or interns with either the Copper Cap program for contract specialists or the Palace Acquire program for other career fields. All of the students have worked with the Air Force for at least two years.

"The Air Force is at a historic cross-road with regards to our civilians," Joseph McDade, force development director for the deputy chief of staff for manpower and personnel, said in an Air Force Print News story. "As we've drawn down, civilian leadership opportunities have increased, particularly among our support communities. The program stems from the need to ensure our civilian developmental paths are as deliberate as those of every other Airman."

Dr. Nath hopes the students walk away from the course with a better understanding and appreciation of the overall Air Force mission and the tools to help them be better leaders.