USMC FAO Notes

LtCol John May, International Affairs Officer Program Coordinator

As promised by Major Pat Carroll in his farewell notes, I have assumed the duty as the Program Manager for the USMC's International Affairs Officer Program (IAOP). Those associated with the IAOP realize the great effort and progress that Pat made while at the helm of the IAOP. I hope to provide effective mid course rudder to guide many of his initiatives through to completion while focusing my own efforts on continued improvement; there remain aspects of the IAOP requiring attention and dedicated effort.

The FY04 IAOP selection board identified 18 qualified applicants--10 FAOs and 8 RAOs-- for entry into the program to meet the requirements of USMC operational forces. Twelve of these IAOs-in-training began their education at the Naval Postgraduate School in Jan 03; the remaining six officers are scheduled to start school this summer. All of the remaining officers from the FY04 board are currently deployed in support of USMC participation in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Their school reporting dates are contingent upon their current command's ability to support their transfer and each set of circumstances will be considered. A decision which meets the needs of the institution and individual will be made and plans to deal with anticipated all eventualities are in place.

The addition of the first flight FY04 students brings the total of Marine Officers in Phase I and II training at NPS and DLI to 38, spanning 3 fiscal years' of selection. The curriculum at NPS is exceeding all expectations and previous proposals to seek post- graduate education in the civilian sector have been abandoned; it's neither academically necessary nor fiscally prudent. The faculty at NPS has proved to be extremely accommodating and understanding of some of the more unusual requests enrolled FAOs and RAOs have made in the interest of their overarching educational objectives. This flexibility was most evident in recent requests to allow Marine students with special qualifications to go TAD in support of deployed units.

The "in-training" population is rounded out by a group of 12 FAOs at various ICT sites around the world. Many of these sites have been manned for the first time with USMC FAOs; Major Coady in Greece, Major Winn in India, Capt Pappas in the Philippines, Capt Lasica in Russia, and Capt Bates in Turkey. In four of these sites, the Marines followed the Army's lead and have fallen in on their well-established paradigms. Moscow was the exception and, after a steep learning curve, Capt Lasica has established a relationship with the Diplomatic Academy and the Pushkin Institute that will serve subsequent FAOs well. Other sites that are currently manned include: Capt Martin in China (dodging SARS), Major Kendall in Japan, Capt Sullivan in Egypt, Capts Benitez, Cho, and Dominguez in Korea, and Capt Mollohan in Thailand. All of these FAOs are working hard to improve their sites while striving to meet their ICT education and training objectives. The expansion of the USMC program will continue in the remainder of this fiscal year with new sites being manned in Brazil, Indonesia, Senegal, and Vietnam.

Since the last issue of the Journal, several USMC FAOs have completed their ICT and returned to billets in the operating forces or appropriate support structure. Major Madden completed his ICT in Oman, Majors Gundlach and Williams in Croatia, Major Goff in Japan, and Capt Connable in Egypt. In accordance with the IAOP's intent, the majority of these officers have returned to a billet in their primary MOS in order to maintain their operational credibility; their cumulative experience will be fully exploited in subsequent utilization tours.

IAOs selection rate to LtCol for FY04 was down slightly from previous years--56% versus a Corps wide rate of 64%. The delta demonstrates the importance of managing the timing of selection, training, and subsequent utilization tours. While the program has made great gains placing both FAOs and RAOs in valid billets in the operational forces, it remains imperative that the individual officer, the manpower monitors, and the program manager at HQMC coordinate their efforts to employ these critical assets. Despite the statistical shortfall in the boardroom this year, the population of IAOs remains motivated and engaged throughout USMC operational forces. The unique skills and experience possessed by this growing group of officers --a low density, high demand cadre--is becoming more widely recognized and requested at all levels of the Marine Air Ground Task Force. The IAOP will continue efforts to train and identify officers capable of meeting these emerging/expanding requirements.

As always, the International Issues Branch (PLU), PP&O, HQMC welcomes comments and suggestions regarding the administration of the IAOP. Please see the FAO Proponent Page on the inside cover of this Journal for POC information.

2004, Foreign Area Officer Association
Herndon, Virginia
Maintained by LTC Steve Gotowicki.
http://www.faoa.org