Military Recruiting (2)

Another Ban Recruiters Story

August 12th, 2008

According to The Eureka Reporter, “Recruiters exaggeration of the benefits of military service and a drive to meet recruitment quotas are two reasons why two ballot initiatives for November’s election will ask Arcata and Eureka voters whether they want to take away the U.S. military’s ability to contact youths under 18 years old for the purpose of recruiting.”

My question about the proposals would be if there is a high school within the city limits and Recruiters visit those schools to canvass for applicants - is each student going to be required to wear a tag or sticker displaying their age (Read the rest of the story…)

Basic Requirements for Navy Enlistment

August 3rd, 2008

People wanting to enlist in the United States Navy must meet specific eligibility requirements to be considered qualified. First lets talk about how old you have to be. The days of being 15 years old and lying about your age to get in are long gone. You have to be at least 17 years of age (17 with parents signed permission that is) and not older than 34 (if you have reached your 35th birthday, your ship has sailed as it were) for service in the active Navy, (Read the rest of the story…)

82 New Chief Navy Counselor CRF

August 1st, 2008

Congratulations to all the new selectees! This is a milestone in your life I know you have worked very hard to achieve. Being a retired NCCM CRF I had to, of course, list those selected in my community.

NCRC - CHIEF NAVY COUNSELOR (RECRUITER)

I am proud of all of you! Outstanding!

You can see the entire Navy wide list in the Goatlocker. (Read the rest of the story…)

Navy for Moms

July 29th, 2008

First of all, congratulations to NavyForMoms.com for achieving your first real membership milestone of 3500 new members in just a few short months! Navy for Mom’s was created to provide parents a forum to exchange information about their experience with the Navy. An excerpt from a recent press release;

“NAVYForMoms.com has become a valuable resource for potential Navy
parents, as well as an online gathering spot for current Navy moms,” said Rear
Adm. Robin Braun, Deputy Commander, Navy Recruiting Command. “We highly
encourage everyone to take a look at the website to view this powerful online
community. The site has enabled many strong friendships and support groups to
develop and provided a place where potential Navy parents can get information.
Its success is a true testament to the value of such a community.”

The web site states in it’s terms of service;

This website (”Site”) is sponsored by the United States Navy (“NAVY”) and produced and maintained by Campbell-Ewald Company (collectively “we,” “us,” “our” “NavyForMoms”) through Ning.com (“Ning”).

Campbell-Ewald (CE) is the company the United States Navy uses to run the Navy.com web site (among others) and also is responsible for generating all the Navy advertising you see on TV, hear on the radio and read in print. A government agency really has to outsource it’s advertising requirements for (Read the rest of the story…)

Behind The Military Recruiting Stats

July 15th, 2008

I come across a number of blogs that each month post the U. S. military service’s recruiting attainments and offer some commentary about what the numbers may mean and why the numbers may not be garnering more press than they do. Yes, it is always great news when the recruiting services achieve their assigned missions but what do the monthly press release numbers actually reflect? The simple answer is they are the number of people shipped (accessed) to active duty (both prior and no-prior service accessions) for that month, the people that start drawing an (Read the rest of the story…)

MEPS Drug and Alcohol Testing (DAT) Program

July 9th, 2008

We have heard it all of our lives, stay away from drugs, just say no and hundreds of other comments and phrases meant to make us aware that using drugs and abusing alcohol can have a huge negative impact of your life. Many of the reasons are health related - use and abuse of drugs and alcohol can lead to deep psychiatric problems and damaged organs not to mention the fractured relationships and self esteem issues your bound to encounter.

It is sometimes mentioned, but rarely accentuated, that your use and abuse of drugs and alcohol can have a profound negative effect on your future - lets take a close look at how it might effect the Navy. (Read the rest of the story…)

Air Force or Navy?

July 7th, 2008

Having served in Navy Recruiting for many years the question about which service is the better service to join would often come up.  When I worked in Panama City, Fl the question on most minds were concerning the Air Force which really was no surprise because Tyndall Air Force Base was close, much larger hence providing a greater influence than the Coastal Systems Station where the Navy’s Dive School and Experimental Diving Unit was located. Statements I would hear like, “I’m joining the Air Force because they treat their people better.” and “They have it better in the Air Force.” made me wonder why the Department of Defense (DOD) would allow such a thing. I had to find out how this vicious rumor has perpetuated into “common knowledge”.

After hearing about it so many times I just had to see for myself. (Read the rest of the story…)

What to Bring to Navy Boot Camp

June 30th, 2008

Because storage space is extremely limited at Recruit Training Command (RTC), you should limit the amount of personal effects you bring, and keep luggage to a maximum of one small gym or travel bag. If your reporting to RTC during winter months (October through April) wear warm outer clothing - it does get cold near the lake! Keep in mind that during your in-processing you will be required to mail any item not listed below, with your excess civilian clothing and personal effects, to your home at your own expense or donate the stuff to charity. Personal items and clothing won’t be allowed to be stored at RTC.

Here is a list of stuff you can bring to Navy boot camp: (Read the rest of the story…)

Physical Preparation For Boot Camp

June 21st, 2008

I know I recently posted about ensuring your within the ht/wt or body fat standards but every day across the nation a number of people are tipping the scales beyond their max weight and missing the mark when it comes to the body fat measurement. Some are not successfully passing the appropriate fitness assessment (IFA, PST) requirements. Please understand if you fail to pass the appropriate physical assessment or fail to make weight/body fat you will be re-classified or not be shipped to Recruit Training Command (RTC) by way of a discharge.

So, let me be clear, before you head off to boot camp you must be physically prepared for the rigors recruit training will offer. Too much training time is lost because prospective Sailors arrive at RTC without the minimum level of strength and endurance. The answer is a conscientious pursuit of Initial Fitness Assessment (IFA) standards and successful completion of this test prior to leaving for RTC. Placing a greater emphasis on this program will (Read the rest of the story…)

Price of Recruiting Just Went Up

June 19th, 2008

Back in 2004 Navy Recruiting Command commissioned a couple of studies. LMI to take a look at overall effectiveness of recruiting commands structure and an RCI study to evaluate the effectiveness of headquarter operations.

The LMI study provided the recommendations needed to reduce the number of recruiting district headquarters to the current 26 and also facilitated the closing of regions central and south and the moving of regions north and west’s headquarters to Millington, TN.

If I remember correctly the RCI study was completed but only gave a second “thumbs-up” to the LMI plan. Both studies were expensive but predicted massive savings in logistics and personnel and fell in line with what the headquarters staff and the Navy wanted to have happen in the first place.

Well, it appears Navy Recruiting Command (Read the rest of the story…)