Cadet Reina Gonzales, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, considers possible movements of advancement at the Team Development Course on June 14 at Fort Knox, Ky. (Photo by Emily Peacock)
FORT KNOX, Ky. – Cadets from 1st Regiment, Basic Camp undertook the Dunagan Teamwork Development Course on June 14 with two squads going through each event simultaneously.
Cadet Jeanette Corpuz, a student at West Virginia State University, said the TDC is all about Cadets working with each other to accomplish a larger goal.
“Basic [Camp] is building your confidence to becoming a good leader,” specified Corpuz. “This helps us going to the real military and leading our own Soldiers.”
Cadets from 1st Regiment, Basic Camp, participated in the Team Development Course on June 14 at Fort Knox, Ky. (Photo by Emily Peacock)
“Cliffhanger” (Event #2)
Cadets from 1st Regiment, Basic Camp, participated in the Team Development Course on June 14 at Fort Knox, Ky. (Photo by Emily Peacock)
At the “Cliffhanger”, Cadet John Belser, a student at the University of North Georgia, was one of the first two Cadets in his squad to get atop the wall they had been tasked with getting their personnel and a crate of ammo over.
Belser stated his squad efficiently accomplished the mission at a fast pace. “Everyone got up and over [and] there wasn’t a whole lot of arguing or conflict,” explained Belser. “I think we did a really good job.”
Cadets from 1st Regiment, Basic Camp, participated in the Team Development Course on June 14 at Fort Knox, Ky. (Photo by Emily Peacock)
He added that the Cadets had bonded a good bit so far, noting that they’d been together for just over a week.
“I think that we’ve gotten really close,” said Belser. “I guess we can thank Basic Camp for that.”
“One Rope Bridge” (Event #6)
Following the completion of “One Rope Bridge”, Sgt. 1st Class Samuel Gomez conducted an After Action Review with the Cadets.
Cadet Gabriel Korgood, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, maneuvers his way along a zip line at the Team Development Course on June 14 at Fort Knox, Ky. (Photo by Emily Peacock)
“Pen and paper out! Pen and paper out,” shouted Gomez, stressing the importance of learning from one’s successes and mistakes to maintain the good and improve the bad.
He praised the Cadets for their ability to match “troop-to-task” and assign specific jobs to specific people.
Critical thinking, explained Gomez, is essential for evaluating Soldiers’ skills and matching troops to tasks for them to complete, which can render a mission more efficient and foster confidence.
Cadets from 1st Regiment, Basic Camp, participated in the Team Development Course on June 14 at Fort Knox, Ky. (Photo by Emily Peacock)
At the “Cliffhanger”, Cadre similarly told Cadets that assigning specific tasks to specific people could greatly improve their ability to carry out future missions.
After the AAR, Gomez expressed that the way the Cadets had grown and bonded together in the short while that they’d been at camp contributed to their ability to accomplish or nearly accomplish their missions on the course.
