Course designed to make transitioning easier for Airmen

  • Published
  • By Senior Airmen Jacob Jimenez
  • Northwest Guardian
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. --  Arriving at Joint Base Lewis-McChord from Air Force technical training can be a major transition for many new Airmen. Luckily, the 62nd Airlift Wing offers an extensive First Term Airmen Course to help Airmen transition from a training environment to a new, more demanding working environment.

The weeklong course consists of more than 30 briefings, providing Airmen the information they'll need to succeed in their Air Force careers.

"This gives them an idea and comfort level to handle whatever obstacles they might have to face while establishing themselves and their families at JBLM," said Staff Sgt. Christian Valente, a course noncommissioned officer.

A mandatory course for all first-term Airmen, the course introduces base organizations and ensures Airmen are current in their training and medical requirements.

"We want to educate them on what programs are available to them," Valente said. "They

benefit from this course by learning that they can go to the inspector general for an IG complaint, what different health services they can use and that they can go to a base chaplain to speak about their personal issues."

On Day One of the course, Airmen are briefed on the enlisted force structure, standards of discipline, disaster preparation, the honor guard, the sexual assault response coordinator, the education center, the honor guard and the Family and Moral, Welfare and Readiness program.

"I understand why the course

is mandatory," said Airman 1st Class Breanna Newman, 62nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron crew chief and FTAC student.

"We get briefed by the people we need to know about and how to contact them because these organizations affect us directly," "After listening to the honor guard's briefing, I'm interested in volunteering for them."

Day Two of FTAC, students learn about personal financial management, the 62nd AW's Staff Judge Advocate, the Area Defense Counsel and the inspector general. The briefings teach the Airmen how to write a budget, file a legal dispute, use the services of the ADC and file an IG complaint.

"The briefings help us understand the big picture and what's available to us," Newman said.

"If we don't know what tools are available to us, how can we use them?"

Unlike the other days of FTAC, Day Three of the course is solely dedicated to resiliency. Throughout the day, Airmen learn about the different areas of resiliency - managing stress, overcoming obstacles, accomplishing goals, problem solving and capitalizing strengths.

"These Airmen have already learned to be an effective trainee when it comes to their job," said Master Sgt. Aaron Weslow, 62nd AW's career assistance adviser and FTAC NCOIC. Our program includes resiliency, finance, SARC, mobility, and zero-tolerance policy briefings that show students how to be a functional Airman, not just a technician,"

The fourth day of FTAC, students receive briefings on health care, safety, deployments, the Office of Special Investigations, suicide prevention, the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment program, and the Airmen Against Drunk Driving program. Safety teaches the students the importance of safety while driving. Suicide prevention and ADAPT teach the students the signs of substance abuse and suicidal behavior.

"FTAC offers them insight into areas beyond their every-day jobs and shows them how important those areas are to their leaders," Weslow said.

On the final day of FTAC, students complete a health assessment, are gas mask fit tested and meet with the wing commander and command chief master sergeant.

"Having a commander or command chief master sergeant, face-to-face, tell a new arrival that the expectation is for them to be an Airman - not just a worker bee - is invaluable for their development and success," Weslow said.

Without FTAC, it would be more challenging for Airmen to adapt to the active-duty Air Force from their initial training, Valente said.

"Basic Military Training strips them down and exposes the skeleton of a trainable Airman," Weslow said. "Technical schooling trains the brain of a functional technician. FTAC starts to put meat back on their bones. We introduce the institutional competencies that every Airman needs to be successful. The rest is up to them."