Airmen and Soldiers support local academy inspection

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Matt Davis
  • 436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE, Del. --  Giving back to the community is one of the reasons military members choose to serve. Service members had a unique opportunity to support the local community when the First State Military Academy needed assistance during an Inspector General JROTC inspection. Delaware Air National Guard, National Guard and Team Dover Airmen played a critical role in the inspection Nov. 30, 2017, by assisting during an open ranks review of all cadet classes at the academy.

This IG inspection is accomplished on a biennial basis and this is the first one since the school opened a couple of years ago. The inspection was conducted by the Marine Corps Director of JROTC. Airmen and Soldiers assisted the IG in accomplishing the inspection of the 405 students and the school’s staff.

“This was FSMA's first IG inspection since opening its doors in August of 2015,” said Col. Robert Wallace, FSMA Senior Marine Instructor. “The goal of the IG inspection is to ensure that the Marine Corps JROTC program is operating in compliance with all orders, directives, and policies pertaining to MCJROTC and to provide any assistance necessary to the personnel responsible for managing the program. In addition, the IG inspection evaluates the overall appearance of the cadets, their performance via personnel inspection, drill and academics.”

During the inspection, Airmen and Soldiers from the local area assisted by grading cadets on uniforms, drill and military knowledge. The augmented military inspectors helped speed up the inspection process and gave cadets a visual connection of joint service cooperation.

“The augment inspectors were a huge help and made a tremendous difference in the performance of our cadets during the personnel inspection,” said Wallace. “Due to the number of augment inspectors (12), we were able to conduct the personnel inspection in a timely and professional manner; no long periods of time standing in formation for the cadets.”

Once the overall IG inspection was complete, it was up to the MCJROTC to determine the grading of the academy. The academy met their goal of obtaining the grade of mission capable. The IG also acknowledged how prepared the cadets were at FSMA.

“We met our goal which was to receive the grade of ‘mission capable’ across all evaluated areas. In addition, the cadets received the grade of ‘exceeded expectations,’ the highest grade possible,” said Wallace.

Military members from the local military community have supported FSMA on several occasions. Some examples include athletic competitions, FSMA military night and classroom guest instructors. This occasion was no different and helped build an even stronger connection between FSMA and the community.

“The assistance from our military community was a huge boost in the overall success of our IG inspection,” said Wallace.