KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Learning is the sunlight and water of personal and professional growth. So needless to say, Reserve Citizen Airmen are expected to continue learning throughout their careers.
For enlisted members, after basic military training, technical school and five-level upgrade training, future noncommissioned officers must complete several professional military courses at certain points in their careers. While completing the distance learning courses are the only requirement for reservists, attending PME in-residence can add an additional layer that reading printed material alone cannot provide.
“A lot of people think that they just attend PME to get promoted,” said Senior Master Sgt. Brett Blanchard, 403rd Force Support Squadron force development superintendent. “But attending in-residence goes above and beyond. It’s going to greatly enhance changes of STEP promotion, first sergeant and chief packages.”
He also said that only the top five percent of Reserve Citizen Airmen are selected to attend in-residence PME courses and that it’s an investment the Wing makes in the Airman, an investment to help them become stronger leaders.
“They’re going to get a lot out of it,” he said. “They’ll see the bigger Air Force picture and improve written and verbal communication skills as well as gain supervision experience.”
Master Sgt. Deanna Negrotto, 403rd Wing director of executive support, said that attending PME in-residence gives Airmen the ability to network with their peers and gain exposure to missions outside their own. She also said that when she attended ALS in-residence they taught her how to be an NCO.
“When you take distance learning PME courses the only information you get is what you read in the book, but when you go in-residence you have people in the classroom who have real experiences related to what you’re learning,” she said. “As a reservist you get to see how we fit into the big Air Force picture and how we complement each other.”
Some of the in-residence courses available to 403rd Airmen include Airman Leadership School, NCO Academy and Senior NCO Academy.
Airman Leadership School is the first rung on the enlisted PME ladder and prepares senior airmen with at least three years time-in-service to be professional warfighters who can lead and supervise others. To attend the in-residence course, members must have fewer than six years time-in-service. It is also highly recommended they have five-level upgrade training completed prior to attending.
The next rung is the NCO Academy, which is dedicated to providing technical sergeants with the tools they need to lead people and manage resources. It is designed to instill the ideals necessary for leadership, teamwork and discipline. To attend the in-residence course, members must complete the distance learning course and have a minimum of eight and a maximum of 14 years time-in-service.
Senior NCO Academy is the third rung and also offers an Advanced Leadership Experience, which prepares master sergeants for increased leadership responsibilities in the joint, combined, and interagency operating/strategic environment. Specifically, its goal is to help SNCOs become adaptable, critically thinking, and strategically relevant leaders in their operating environment. To attend the in-residence course, senior master sergeants or master sergeants in senior master sergeant slots must first complete the distance learning course and have a minimum of 12 and a maximum of 18 years time-in-service.
In residence opportunities are available at bases throughout the southeast region for ALS and NCOA, however Senior NCO Academy is only offered at Maxwell Air Force Base.
Wing members who would like to attend an in-residence PME course should submit an application for developmental education in-residence (AF IMT 4036), a staff summary sheet, their last three enlisted performance reports (if applicable) a record review rip from the Virtual MPF and their current fitness scores.
Blanchard said that to be competitive when submitting a package for in-residence PME, members should do their best to completely fill out the application and not leave any white space on the form.
“You have to sell the command chief on why you should be allowed to attend in residence because he’s going to look at the whole person for approval,” he said.
Members who have questions about the process or need copies of the required forms can contact their unit training manager, as well as the education office.