Army Prep Course Aims to Pull Youth Up to Recruiting Standards
Pilot program teaches students math, vocab, test-taking, and military discipline.
CAITLIN M. KENNEY | AUGUST 30, 2022
ARMY PERSONNEL
FORT JACKSON, S.C.—While a man dissects a math problem on a whiteboard at the front of a classroom, some of his students call out responses while others hunch over worksheets at their desks. The scene might be mistaken for a high-school class were it not for the Army uniforms worn by the students and instructors and the posters highlighting Army values and a warrior ethos.
The class is part of the new Future Soldier Preparatory course, a pilot program to help recruits who come up short on fitness or academic standards to improve and move onto basic training.
“This is really important for me what we're trying to do and really for the Army,” Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville told reporters traveling with him. “It's a challenge right now to get young men and women that are qualified to serve.”
McConville visited Fort Jackson on Aug. 26 to learn more about the program, which started earlier this month with 142 students. Several more groups will cycle through over the next year, according to Lt. Col. Ebony Calhoun, a spokeswoman for McConville. The program cost $4 million to stand up and is projected to cost another $6 million to run through September 2023, she said. If it works, officials said, the Army may make the course permanent and expand it to other basic training locations.
https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2022/08/army-prep-course-aims-pull-youth-recruiting-standards/376515/
