Reservist Magazine is the award-winning official publication of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. Bi-monthly issues include news and feature articles about the men and women who comprise America's premier national maritime safety and security
Issue link: https://uscgreservist.epubxp.com/i/140140
Sector Southeastern New England RFRS Staff Develops Indoctrination Process By Lt. Patrick O'Donnell, Chief, Reserve Force Readiness, Sector Southeastern New England A s a Reserve Program Administrator (RPA), and Chief of Sector Southeastern New England's (SENE) Reserve Force Readiness System (RFRS) staff, I am always seeking better ways to properly educate and inform reservists; to provide them the tools they need to enjoy a successful Reserve career. Over time, I have found that many who affiliate with the Selected Reserve (SELRES) either as a new accession or after leaving active duty have very little knowledge of what is actually expected of them as reservists. In an effort to educate them about the nuances of being a productive member of the Reserve Component, SENE has developed and implemented a unique Reserve indoctrination process. Most units conduct a "check-in" process that provides the Reserve member with the basic information and then release them to their supervisor. We take a bit different approach at SENE. Before a new reservist is released to their particular division or sub-unit our RFRS staff conducts a standardized two-day Reserve indoctrination class. The in-depth course is designed to provide each member with information about their SELRES requirements: information that often takes a reservist many months to learn and understand. This enables the new member to report to their assigned position and immediately begin working on their training requirements. The indoctrination syllabus is divided into detailed sections covering the following areas: Unit Overview: An overview of the unit and any outlying units, its missions, and their area of responsibility. Additionally, the command structure, philosophy and rating chain are reviewed. Commandant's Participation Standards: This includes an in-depth review of the Commandant's participation standards outlined in the Reserve Policy Manual. Each standard is carefully highlighted and the consequences for not meeting these standards are discussed. Administrative Readiness: This section of the syllabus reviews all of the items that make a reservist administratively ready. • Reserve Training: Inactive duty for training (IDT), active duty for training (ADT) policy, "C" schools, electronic training requests (ETR). • Anniversary Years: Satisfactory anniversary years for retirement versus satisfactory years for participation. • Weight standards compliance. • Evaluations: Deadlines and process to complete. • Individual development plans (IDP) and individual training plans (ITP). • Government Travel Credit Card (GTCC): Policy review and application completion. • Review of mandated training (MT) A and B requirements. • Reserve Point Statement: A review of each reservist's point statement is conducted. This is an important step as many reservists joining the SELRES from active duty often do not have their active duty time reflected on their Reserve Point statement. If this is the case then a trouble ticket must be submitted by the appropriate Servicing Personnel Office in order to have a Statement of Creditable Service (SOCS) completed. Having a SOCS executed will verify and correct any missing service time. 36 RESERVIST � Issue 2 • 2013 The Staff of Sector Southeastern New England's RFRS Staff (l. to r.) Lt. Patrick O'Donnell, Mr. Ronald Hill and YN2 Phillip Bryant Personal Readiness: Both personal readiness and family readiness are discussed. This includes legal planning, employer relations, dependent care, and financial preparedness. Medical Readiness: All medical requirements are reviewed and the member is advised on how to complete these requirements. In addition, TRICARE Reserve Select and the TRICARE Dental Program are discussed as well as other available medical benefits when serving on active duty orders. Finally, the procedures for what to do if injured while either in a drilling status or on active duty order is covered. Computer Access and CG Programs: Numerous CG programs and applications are reviewed. We ensure that CG Work Station profiles have been moved correctly. Direct Access navigation is reviewed, forgotten password option is setup, personal information is updated. In depth training is given on requesting IDT drills and ADT orders, paying particular attention to meals, a common place for error. Coast Guard Business Intelligence (CGBI) is reviewed and each member subscribes to the "Personal Notification" option. T-Pax is reviewed and Common Access Card (CAC) readers are issued along with the appropriate software. Once the indoctrination class is completed a CG workstation is provided and the member has time to complete mandated training (MT) or any other outstanding administrative items. In addition to the class each new member is given the Reserve Handbook, which was created by the SENE RFRS staff. The handbook serves as a quick single reference for critical readiness and Reserve specific information. We have found this indoctrination process yields great dividends to both active duty supervisors and reservists. The supervisor is more confident that their new member is administratively ready and armed with the essential information to begin mobilization training. New Reserve members have a better understanding of what is expected of them and how to meet their requirements. � NOTE: The 1st District Commander has designated the SENE Reserve handbook a district "Best Practice." The handbook, along with the indoctrination class syllabus, can be found on the Sector Southeastern New England CG Portal site at: https://cgportal2.uscg. mil/units/sectorsene/SitePages/Reserve.aspx It is also available on the 1st District (dxr) SharePoint site.