Command and General Staff College (CGSC)

It's been a couple weeks since I blogged but I have a great reason. I've been away for military training.

I just returned from Fort Dix, New Jersey. I was there for two weeks completing the final training classes that were required to prepare me for promotion to Lieutenant Colonel (LTC).

I've been a Major in the Georgia Army National Guard for just a tad over four years now. Each step of the promotion ladder requires additional training in addition to good Officer Evaluation Reports (OER's). The training to prepare me for promotion to LTC is called Intermediate Level Education (ILE) and is provided through the Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC).
The training focused on the Strategic, Operational, and Tactical levels of war. The course was a six week course spread over the course of a year. It was divided into three parts; a two week course focusing on the Strategic level of war; eight weekends of training that focused on the Operational level of war; and the final two weeks focusing on the Tactical level of war.

I've been back in the National Guard for nearly seven years and this is the third school that I have attended in order to progress in my career. The other schools were the Field Artillery Officers Advanced Course (FAOAC) and the Combined Arms Services Staff School (CAS3). In addition to these schools I've also attended Air Assault School and completed the Military Police Transition Course in the last few years. Being a well educated officer is a must in today's military.

I know this training is valuable. I applied much of it when I commanded Service Battery, 1/214th FA (Toccoa, GA) on a Homeland Security mission and during my year in Baghdad as the Battle Major for the Third Infantry Division (3ID). I'm sure this most recent training will be extremely valuable as I move forward in leadership positions. Maybe even as your next Congressman.

Now's the Time!