Command and General Staff College Foundation News Spring 2021 - 7

Update from the Commandant
by Lt. Gen. James E. Rainey
Commanding General Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth
Commandant, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College
Deputy Commanding General for Combined Arms, TRADOC
As

they ready themselves for their next missions

and the challenges ahead, it is time to congratulate

Command and
General Staff Officer Course (CGSOC).
They've met the challenges of CGSC in a year that has
been anything but typical and have earned a brief pause to
consider their accomplishments.
To our soon-to-be graduates, now is the time to reflect
on everything you've learned this year, and to galvanize
the relationships you've made with your fellow officers.
Stay in touch and remember to leverage these connections
in the future to make our Army and Joint Force stronger.
Ready your leader-development plans now, before you
report to your next assignment. There is an army of junior
leaders that expect the very best from you, and you owe it
to them to pass on what you know, helping them to reach
their potential.
To the rest of the team, I cannot say enough about this
year's success as our faculty, staff and students took the
once-in-a-generation challenge that was COVID-19 and
made training happen. Off-setting two cohort groups
allowed leaders to continue to learn while protecting their
families and remaining safe during the most challenging
days of the pandemic. While planning and conceptualizing
such a year was difficult, re-integrating the class mid-year
was CGSC's biggest success. In January, the team arrived
ready and motivated to get into the fray and finish the year
without losing time or diminishing the quality of their
education.
In addition, this split-cohort system has served as a
model for an exciting change to CGSC. The Combined
Arms Center is developing a new tailored, talent-based
MEL-4 system to maximize the number of Soldiers that
have the opportunity to attend a portion of CGSOC on
Fort Leavenworth. Starting next year, some of the officers
selected for satellite CGSOC will attend either Common
Core or the Advanced Operations Course (AOC) here in a
TDY status. Finally, satellite-selected officers will attend
CGSC with their peers here at the center of the Army
profession, where they have access to our world-class
facilities and faculty, and can build relationships with their
fellow leaders.
In the coming years, more officers will have input in
how they attend CGSOC by either opting into a traditional
resident experience with a PCS or attending a blended
course. The blended course will consist of in-person
attendance to either the Common Core or AOC in a

PHOTO COURTESY COMBINED ARMS CENTER PUBLIC AFFAIRS

the newest graduating class of the

Lt. Gen. James E. Rainey

TDY status and completing the other half of the course
with distance learning. This opens up more and better
opportunities for broadening experiences. For example,
if an officer on a broadening assignment is offered a
prestigious nominative position that would conflict with
the first half of CGSOC, that officer will now be able to
complete Common Core with distance learning and attend
AOC in-person. Up until now, that officer would have had
to either pass on the opportunity or defer CGSC for a year.
This initiative will not stop at CGSC. We are analyzing
ways to apply these principles across all PME cohorts. This
effort puts people first and will give Soldiers real choices
to guide their PME around what is best for their careers and
their families.
I also want to take a moment to discuss our current focus
on career-long assessments. To learn, grow and realize
their potential, leaders must actively seek a complete and
honest understanding of their abilities. This is an individual
responsibility the collective impact of which will strengthen
the Army Profession as a whole.
The Center for the Army Profession and Leadership
(CAPL) has spearheaded this effort with new selfassessment tools that will allow a leader to identify, track
and improve their abilities from the time they join our
profession to the time they leave. Career-long assessments
are designed to guide a Soldier's self-development and
personal improvement. Right now assessments are given
to Basic Officer Leadership Course (BOLC) lieutenants,
with implementation ongoing throughout Captain Career

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Command and General Staff College Foundation News Spring 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Command and General Staff College Foundation News Spring 2021