FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. —More than 75 senior leaders from across Fort Leonard Wood participated in the U.S. Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence on-site Oct. 30 and 31 at the Pershing Community Center.
According to Dan Goff, MSCoE deputy G-3 and director of training, the on-site’s purpose was to confirm and validate the objectives and tasks supporting MSCoE’s five fiscal year 2024 priorities, which are: care for, retain and inspire current and future Soldiers, civilians and their families; train warriors of character; develop the next generation of Soldiers and leaders for our Army and the joint force; drive change that shapes the force of Army 2030/2040; and engage and build teams and partnerships.
“The on-site also gave senior leaders an opportunity to discuss opportunities and challenges associated with these priorities, identify risk and ensure that we are resourced to deliver the objectives and tasks for FY24,” Goff said.
Gregg Thompson, U.S. Army Combined Arms Center deputy to the commanding general, opened the session and provided an overview about CAC’s priorities — develop leaders, shape the future force and sustainable strategic path — and its role and structure, which he said is “very broad.”
“CAC has a footprint literally somewhere across the United States doing something for the Army,” Thompson, who spoke to the group via video tele-conference, said.
Included in CAC’s footprint are eight centers of excellence, including MSCoE, which Thompson said, has an important role in supporting CAC’s priorities — specifically with the work the MSCoE team is doing with the Protection Warfighting Function.
“The work you are doing with the Protection Warfighting Function is so far beyond where I thought it would go a year and a half ago, and I just commend the center and all the schools who are a part of the warfighting function and really appreciate all the hard work you are doing,” said Thompson, who served as the MSCoE deputy to the CG before joining the CAC team in June 2022.
Thompson’s presentation provided a segue for Maj. Gen. Christopher Beck, MSCoE and Fort Leonard Wood commanding general, who shared what he sees as strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats after being in command for 90 days.
“That ties into the very first strength (on the slide) and that is our reputation,” Beck said. “Mr. Thompson, most of you know him from his time here as the deputy, when I came on board, I set up a phone call with him and we had a great talk and the first thing he said to me was, ‘MSCoE has a great reputation.’ The reality is you guys have earned this reputation — this team here has earned this reputation.”
Some of the other strengths and opportunities captured by Beck included furthering partnerships and integration with stakeholders throughout the Army and other components, and with external partners. Beck said the team must “figure out, how do we take Fort Leonard Wood to the Army.”
“You’ve probably noticed the three commandants and myself have been travelling,” he said. “We are getting out to the Army. We are getting out to the operational force. We’re going to see CAC and TRADOC (Training and Doctrine Command) and other training centers and other organizations. We’re taking our views out to them to ensure … what we’re doing is relevant.”
Opportunities, Beck added, can also be seen in many of the weaknesses and threats he identified, such as manning and funding.
Monday’s session ended with MSCoE and Fort Leonard Wood Command Sgt. Maj. Jorge Arzabala discussing the major updates and changes to the installation’s standards book, which outlines and defines standards and discipline for service members assigned to Fort Leonard Wood, tenant units, service members in a temporary duty status and service members attending MSCoE courses.
According to Arzabala, the changes and updates were captured by a working group made up of service members from units across post and “made sense” due to the feedback he had received.
“This is our standard,” Arzabala said, referring to the standards book. “At the end of the day, we’re taking a lot of ambiguity out of what was already established, and it’s creating a baseline that applies to Army regulation and our sister services.”
The on-site’s second day focused mainly on an in-depth look at MSCoE’s five priorities. Leading up to the on-site, operational planning teams, established by MSCoE’s G-3 and with representation from subject matter experts from across post, developed objectives and tasks associated with each priority.
During Tuesday’s session, OPT leads provided an overview, answered questions and received feedback regarding those objectives and tasks, which ranged from childcare and gyms to a master plan for training areas and ranges to modernization within the schools — the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and U.S. Army Military Police School.
The on-site also provided the “kickoff discussion” for the MSCoE Protection Forum, which is scheduled for July 23-26 on Fort Leonard Wood and will provide a “very deliberate and structured discussion on Protection,” said Dr. Shawn Howley, special assistant to the MSCoE CG.
“Part of the energy behind (the forum) is, we as a center have made incredible strides with educating the Army on Protection,” Howley said. The forum “is the next logical approach.”
The forum is still in the planning phase but will feature a wet-gap crossing and will have multiple senior guest speakers “to help the stage and the framework for discussion and provide their insights and aspects about how they’ve executed Protection,” Howley said.
According to Goff, the priorities, tasks and objectives discussed during the on-site will be published as the MSCoE FY24 Command Guidance later this month.
“That guidance will include suspense dates and a plan to track completion of the FY24 requirements,” he said.
