IST LT David M. Saunders - Reporting for Duty

On Monday, June 24, LT David M. Saunders took the Oath of Office at the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center (AOC) in Lakeland, FL. He will be serving as a Navigator on the WP-3D. LT Saunders joins us after over 7 years of service in the US Air Force where he served as an HC-130J Instructor Combat Systems Officer. Originally from Howell, Michigan, David graduated from Michigan State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Astrophysics. During his time with the USAF, David completed multiple deployments to U.S. Central and Africa Commands, where he flew and supported Combat Search and Rescue missions. His previous experience also includes leading and participating in Aviation Safety, Training, and Commander’s Support staff. David is super excited for the opportunity to continue to serve and become a part of the NOAA Corps team. Welcome Aboard LT Saunders!

Recent and Ongoing BOTC Updates

Over the past few classes, our Basic Officer Training Class (BOTC) has undergone many changes. Most recently the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) shortened their twice a year Officer Candidate School from 17 weeks to 12 weeks. In response, NOAA Corps Officer Training Center (NCOTC) shortened BOTC from 20 weeks to 16 weeks. The following adjustments were made to facilitate this change.

• The 2 week USCGC EAGLE cruise was eliminated from OCS and BOTC.
• The 1 week BOTC Cruise on a NOAA Ship was removed from BOTC.
• One week of instruction overall was removed through scheduling efficiency and curriculum edits.

In addition to these changes, the joint OCS/BOTC schoolhouse has enacted significant alterations to the military aptitude and barracks training program, beginning with BOTC 144. These changes provide Officer Candidates with a more flexible schedule, more study time, and more time to sleep. The strict barracks atmosphere and severe oversight are removed earlier in the program, and liberty is made available sooner and easier to attain. With these changes, OCS and BOTC staff can now evaluate Officer Candidates' performance and conduct in a less structured environment, which is more reflective of a fleet experience.

BOTC’s maritime curriculum has experienced two main changes. First, shiphandling now more closely follows the USCGA Academic Schedule, maximizing NOAA use of the Academy’s Training Boats during their down periods. This change provides unlimited access to the USCGA Training Boats during shiphandling week. Shiphandling week is now 40% classroom time and 60% practical underway time. Second, Bridge Resource Management (BRM) has been removed from the BOTC curriculum. Many aspects of BRM are taught in BOTC classes, including leadership, stress management, communication, and operational risk management. Instead of BRM, BOTC’s final week at USMRC is a “Capstone Week,” where the Ensigns create and present a voyage plan for their ship’s homeport, then execute their plans in the simulators as Conn, with their peers filling other bridge team roles in the simulators. Most ships conduct BRM training with their own wardrooms which is more practical and allows for specific BRM development within each bridge team.

To keep in line with Coast Guard OCS and prepare for the potential for additional classes, NCOTC has sought to streamline BOTC training by removing redundant coursework, maximizing training time by utilizing weekends, lunches, and evening hours, and adjusting military aptitude training to serve a dual purpose as maritime training. With these changes, NCOTC has been able to continue to meet the objectives of BOTC, in four fewer weeks of instruction. Maritime ensigns now report to their ships approximately thirty days earlier, gaining valuable experience with qualified members of their ships, and have the opportunity to earn their in-port and underway OOD qualifications sooner.

Moving forward, NCOTC will continue to work with Marine Operations to further refine BOTC curriculum and ensure we maximize available time with relevant, practical, and useful skills and knowledge. BOTC will eventually have a redeveloped and more robust curriculum that provides a necessary foundation for ships to improve upon during the OOD qualification process.

For any questions about these changes or any other NCOTC-based training efforts, please contact CDR Chris Skapin (chief.ncotc@noaa.gov) and/or CDR Andrew Colegrove (chief.careermgmt.cpc@noaa.gov).

Did You Know? NOAA Diver Qualification Insignia

Per NOAA Corps Directives (NCD) 12604(C)(3), qualified NOAA Divers are entitled to wear the NOAA Diver Insignia, but only after authorization by the Director, NOAA Corps. CPC has been working with the NOAA Diving Program and NOAA Diving Center to review and refine the processes for connecting the qualification of divers to their Director’s insignia authorization. While details are still being worked out, each qualified diver officer is encouraged to review their OPF to confirm the presence of both their NOAA Diver qualification (issued by the NOAA Diving Program and/or Center), as well as separate documentation authorizing wear of the insignia (issued by Director, NOAA Corps). Please communicate any missing documentation and/or questions to CPC via HR Action Request ticket in OPF Online under the “Awards and Insignia” Area/Category of Request (Subcategory of “General Questions”). Questions may also be directed to LTjg Kelly Wooten (kelly.wooten@noaa.gov) and support.ndc@noaa.gov.

From the Assignment Desk: NOS OR&R Billet #7563 - Regional Response Officer, Southeast

• Office Grade: O-2 / O-3
• Duty Station: Mobile, Alabama
• Rotation Date: ASAP

If you’re interested in emergency environmental response including to oil and chemical spills, come join NOS as the Regional Response Officer (RRO), Southeast. The RRO supports NOS staff in the Southeast region during emergency response efforts alongside U.S. Coast Guard, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and other federal response agencies. Between responses, you will help produce and present education materials to local, state, and federal partners about pollution response. Your support role is essential to environmental stewardship, and this position can be the first among numerous NOAA Corps billets that support a career path within NOS’ Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R).

Located at the NOAA Disaster Response Center (DRC) in Mobile, AL, this billet fosters collaboration among multiple OR&R teams and permits professional career development in critical areas of expertise such as incident command structure (ICS), emergency response, training, safety, and disaster preparedness.

Any interested officer should contact the NOS Technical Assistant Liaison Officer for OR&R, CDR Aaron Maggied at ssc.northwest@noaa.gov for more information.