CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Twenty three Team Charleston senior NCOs were indoctrinated as Charleston AFB's newest additional "undershirts" Dec. 7 when they officially completed the week-long Additional Duty First Sergeant Seminar.
Senior Master Sgt. James Woodham, First Sergeant Academy Director of education, said this class not only gave our senior NCOs an invaluable skill set but it also gave them the tools to be able to help junior ranking Airmen.
"This class gave Charleston's SNCOs the leadership tools necessary to be able to help our Airmen solve their problems in the absence of the unit's first sergeant," said Sergeant Woodham. "By the nature of what they do, there is no other career field other than that of a first sergeant because of the impact they have in people's lives.
The Additional Duty First Sergeant Seminar, which began on Dec. 3, is designed to provide an environment that will increase the undershirts ability to function as a supervisor, communicator, leader, and advisor to the unit commander.
During the course of the week-long seminar the undershirts received more than 40 hours of training on pertinent information to assist them in performance of their duty. The training included topics such as first sergeant responsibilities, domestic violence awareness, preventative discipline and counseling. However, one master sergeant assigned to the 437th Security Forces Squadron felt the information he received on family care planning was the most informative.
"Our Airmen and their families are priority number one in any organization," said Master Sgt. Anthony Mullins, 437 SFS installation security section chief. "Without strong support from both the unit and their families at home, the mission could suffer."
Master Sgt. Kendrick Mast, 437th Aerial Port Squadron first sergeant and president of the Charleston AFB First Sergeants Council, explained this seminar was essential because of the high number of deployment taskings and retirements during the last year in the first sergeant ranks.
"Throughout this last year, a lot of first sergeants have been tasked with deployments or have received orders for a permanent change of station at the same time which put Charleston AFB in kind of a bind," said Sergeant Mast. "We managed to get this class set up and each unit provided a master sergeant or master sergeant select to attend the training."
Upon completion of the seminar, the newly trained undershirts could fill in for their unit's first sergeant while deployed or until a new first sergeant from another base can PCS to Charleston AFB.
Chief Master Sgt. Bernise Belcer, 437th Airlift Wing command chief master sergeant expressed her enthusiasm and the pride she felt for the Airmen upon completion of the seminar.
"The first sergeant seminar was an overwhelming success," said Chief Belcer. "We had 23 enthusiastic master sergeants and master sergeant selects who were taught very valuable information to help prepare them to fill in for their unit first sergeants or to perform first sergeant duties on a full time basis."
Chief Belcer also commented on the positive feedback she received from the instructor teaching the Additional Duty First Sergeant Course.
"Sergeant Woodham has been an instructor for more than two years and he told me this was his best group of students," said Chief Belcer. "This is a testament to the caliber of the students and how serious they took the responsibility of being an undershirt."