Working through it…

CGSC Foundation Friends and Supporters –

Since the graduation ceremonies earlier this summer, our Foundation and the Army University have continued working through restrictions brought on by the pandemic.

Army University and the Command and General Staff College recently welcomed the new Provost/Deputy Commandant, Brig. Gen. Donn Hill, who is actively preparing for the 2021 Academic Year.
The School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) is already underway delivering professional military education to its majors and colonels in the Advanced Military Studies Program and the Advanced Strategic Leadership Studies Program. SAMS is doing some exciting things impacting both inside and outside the classroom.
Likewise, the Department of Distance Education (DDE) continues to deliver professional military education to its more than 6,500 enrolled students around the world. With the faculty located at Fort Leavenworth and spread across the world in the TASS-ILE battalions, DDE continues to innovate and deliver lessons to thousands of CGSOC students both in residence and online.
The School of Command Preparation (SCP) has already restarted the delivery of its curriculum, having hosted several classes of battalion and brigade command teams here at Fort Leavenworth. They have redesigned their reception and operating procedures, and have been a model for how the Army can operate short duration education and training events.
Finally, the Command and General Staff School faculty and staff are busily preparing for the incoming resident class of the Command and General Staff Officer Course (CGSOC), which will start in early September. The resident Class of 2021 will have a reduced number of students and may face a mix of delivery modes. And while there are numerous accommodations in place, both in the Lewis and Clark facility and with the curriculum, who knows what challenges the COVID-19 will have on academic year 2021?

The leaders of each of these organizations – SAMS Director Col. Brian Payne, DDE Director Col. Scott Victor and CGSS Director Col. Scott Green – will each provide insights and highlights of their activities in the upcoming edition of the Foundation News magazine. I encourage you to take a look at these articles when the magazine is published in the coming weeks.

Speaking of which, the Foundation News is our bi-annual magazine designed to provide information about what is happening at the Command and General Staff College and with our Foundation to alumni and friends. If you don’t already receive the magazine you can subscribe in a couple of different ways. If you join the CGSCF Alumni Association you will receive our magazine as part of your membership. If you support our Foundation through a donation you will receive a complimentary copy. You can also request a copy by sending me an email. Plus, you can always read the magazine here on our website.

In addition to exciting things happening at the College, the CGSC Foundation also continues to move forward. We recently welcomed a new class of nine trustees to our board and said farewell and thank you to five retiring trustees. We also had the pleasure to honor two long-serving board members with “Trustee Emeritus” status – former President Hyrum Smith and former Treasurer Tom Dials were bestowed this honor. I thank all our Trustees, past and present, for volunteering their time and talents to support our Foundation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly disrupted our program efforts, particularly in the area of outreach. Our ability to connect the citizenry with their Staff College continues to be restricted as we must be prudent in how we conduct activities so as to comply with health and safety guidelines. Look for some new online and virtual events we’ll conduct this fall.

We will be adding a new feature to our magazine and website – Alumni Updates. Please click on “Submit an Alumni Update” under the “Alumni” menu on the website and tell us what is happening in your world. We think this will be a great way to share successes and good news with fellow alumni and supporters and hope that this feature will allow us all to stay better connected.

My thanks go to all who support our Foundation. The support you provide matters – the work of our Foundation matters. Stay safe.

Roderick M. Cox
President/Chief Executive Officer
CGSC Foundation, Inc.