Barnes Center works to achieve commander’s vision for enlisted education Published July 17, 2009 By Staff. Sgt. Brannen Parrish Air University Public Affairs MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- Nearly one year ago, Air University embarked upon what will likely be considered a significant milestone for Air Force enlisted professional military education - the creation of the Thomas E. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education. The sweeping venture brought the Air Force First Sergeants Academy, the Air Force Senior NCO Academy, the Community College of the Air Force, Enlisted Professional Military Education, the Enlisted Heritage Research Institute and the NCO Academies in the continental United States under a single command located at the Gunter Annex. The result is a center that speaks with a single voice for enlisted education which highlights Air University's continued commitment in developing a professional enlisted force capable of meeting the service's needs. "The great thing about the Barnes Center is not only do you have enlisted PME, but you have CCAF educating the enlisted force, helping every Airman better themselves," said Chief Master Sgt. Thomas Young, commandant of the Peterson NCO Academy at Peterson AFB, Colo. "You also have the Air Force First Sergeants Academy which trains first sergeants to support and take care of those Airmen." According to Chief Young, the Barnes Center affects officers as well as enlisted. "Ultimately our customers are the commanders who expect us to train and develop professional Airmen and NCOs to go out, do their jobs and accomplish the mission. I tell all of my classes, 'This has made you better, but you are going to take what you've learned here and make others better.' A class of 100 students has the potential to go out and transform thousands." In the past year, the academies at the Barnes Center have engaged in several initiatives that will impact the Air Force. The SNCOA responded to the Air Force's increased emphasis on physical fitness by revising the lesson plan for PT and developed a fitness program for injured Airmen. The initiative, known as Condition Limited, creates workouts for Airmen with medical profiles. "The bottom line is we lean forward," said Chief Master Sgt. Shelia Knox, acting SNCOA commandant. "The SNCOA is a big part of implementing Air Force physical training standards." Last summer, the Gunter NCO Academy rewrote the case studies used by NCO academies throughout the United States. The narratives are populated with dynamic characters whose personality types contribute to real-life scenarios. Students learn to apply the knowledge they gained during the course and develop critical thinking skills in the process. "During the summer break we took the old case studies and redeveloped the characters," said Senior Master Sgt. Paul Mitchell, acting director of education at the Gunter NCO Academy. "The feedback we received during the testing stage was overwhelmingly positive." The educational curriculum cadre approved the material for implementation last September and NCO academies around the country incorporated it into their curriculum. The Community College of the Air Force recently graduated its first cohort of students in the Air University Associates to Baccalaureate Cooperative program and began the General Education Mobile program, which allows students to earn their general education credits more quickly by utilizing a single school. CCAF currently partners with seven civilian schools in the program. The FSA graduated its first international student, Warrant Officer Jay McLaren of the Canadian Air Force, in April. That initiative is one example of how the FSA accomplishes the second of the 'broad priorities' outlined by Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz - "Partner with the Joint and Coalition team to win today's fight." Each Barnes Center organization continues developing innovative ideas that ultimately impact every participant in the Total Force. But the transition under a single command has not been without its challenges. Seeing the potential for synergizing many of the organization's functions, Col. Charles Johnson, commander, Barnes Center, called for an offsite meeting with twenty-five senior leaders from the schools recently. "I felt like we had different processes occurring in the three organizations that came together to become the Barnes Center. They were all great organizations, and still are, and I believe the operational readiness inspection last fall and the recent SACS Accreditation visit validated that fact," said Col. Johnson. "However, I felt that communication flow and the potential to build on various synergies between the organizations could improve enlisted education across the board." From the Tyndall Air Force Base NCO Academy, participants developed a plan to streamline processes and enhance the center's ability to accomplish its mission. Offsite participants were selected for their expertise in one of the five functional areas which include technology, finance, facilities, organization, and personnel/force development. By the final day the team hammered out a plan that will allow the Barnes Center to be a more effective and efficient developer and disseminator of Enlisted PME. "We were able to chart milestones in the five areas we reviewed," said Col. Johnson. "Additionally, we were able to tie those milestones into our Balanced Scorecard Strategy Map. This approach allows us to review our milestones and check progress in each of the five areas." Some key initiatives resulting from the offsite include championing enlisted heritage, developing partnerships with other academic institutions and conducting institutional research. Utilizing technology to deliver EPME is another area that will receive increased focus. "The Barnes Center is moving along with the university to develop distance learning courses," said Jeff Geidner, Dean of Educational Programs Cadre for EPME. "One of the initiatives that came out of the offsite is a more focused effort on the development and delivery of distance learning and the development of Barnes Center staff to be more effective in their roles as instructors and curriculum developers." Colonel Johnson said the offsite will have a lasting effect upon enlisted education and EPME. "I think the result of the offsite is that we will push Air Force Enlisted PME to a higher level, and allow the leadership teams that follow us to raise the bar even more. The bottom line is building enlisted education that more effectively trains, educates and graduates America's enlisted Airmen in skills and competencies that enhance their ability to accomplish the Air Force mission."