Each semester, Cadets are required to participate in Field Training Exercise (FTX) at an off-campus location. During the fall, both Alpha Company and Bravo Company come together to conduct this training exercise. This year , Cadets had an exceptional opportunity due to the presence of MAT 1233 from 2nd Battalion, 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade who helped plan and execute the FTX at Stone’s Ranch Military Reservation in East Lyme, CT.

Execution

With FTX approaching quickly, planning began with Company Commander CDT Goss and S-3 CDT Davis during senior week in August. Once roles were assigned and deadlines were set, CDT Davis learned something he would never have expected: an entire Manuever Advisor Team (MAT) nicknamed the “GOATs” from 2nd Battalion, 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade would be coming to help him plan and oversee the execution.

Early in the planning process, CDT Davis met with CPT Young, a championship weightlifter and United States Military Academy graduate nicknamed “Strong GOAT” by his subordinates who helped advise CDT Davis when planning the various events. After multiple shifts and changes, a total roster of events was finalized with MAT 1233’s guidance. With certain events like the rappel tower being run by the GOATs, the Cadets involved received unique training from professionals that they otherwise would not have had.

CDT Davis said, “The SFAB team was instrumental in the success of our FTX. They not only helped navigate our planning through unconsidered friction points, they also provided subject matter experts to train our
MSIIIs on the rappel tower and improve our ranger challenge team. The result of their efforts was the best training value I have seen at any of our battalion’s FTXs.”

During the FTX, MAT 1233 was critical in providing tactical advice as well during battle drills lanes where each squad was assigned an advisor from MAT 1233. The OIC for the battle drills lanes, CDT Garcia said “SFAB was very crucial in helping Cadets at all MS levels for battle drills and IMT in preparation for Advanced Camp. They provided a unique, operational perspective that we had not experienced before.” Specific advice was given based upon recent deployment and a laundry list of additional training throughout their careers, to include Ranger School.

Conclusion

At the conclusion of the FTX, Cadets felt significantly better prepared for future training opportunities and were enthralled to learn about SFAB, their mission,
and gain new insight as to the importance of small unit tactics.

Every year the Connecticut National Guard comes to UConn Storrs to showcase their equipment, explain their mission to the public, recruit new Soldiers, and educate Cadets on the various branches. This year , Cadets got the opportunity for hands on training with some of the National Guard’s equipment while asking questions about the various branches.

Execution

Branch Day was coordinated and planned by its lab OIC, CDT Cayangyang, beginning during senior week in August. The planning process began with complete coordination with the University and the National Guard, making the planning challenging as CDT Cayangyang had to take on the role of liaison as well as lab OIC.

CDT Cayangyang stated “The biggest thing for me about planning my lab was that I was planning around the lack of branches. We’ve had ten to twelve branches come out in the past and this year
there was only six. So, I had to adapt and adjust my plan. I also had to manage the time for lab. Typically, when we’ve done these labs, they were separate labs and they lasted two hours. I had to combine those two labs into one.”

Despite the adversity, the planning was complete without any hiccups and the Cadets got to spend time with Soldiers from the Engineers, Infantry , A viation, Chemical, Medical, and Military Police. In each, experienced Officers, Noncommissioned Officers, and Soldiers explained what their branches do and how their role fits into the National Guard’s mission. Officers also had the opportunity to explain to Cadets how the commissioning process worked for them and what life as a Second Lieutenant is like within their branch.

Afterwards, Cadets got the opportunity to do a workout with the National Guard’s Mobile Athletic Program on Founder’s Green, consisting of different stations including a massive blow up obstacle course.

Conclusion

By the time training was concluded, Cadets had a fun bonding experience within their squads and got to learn a lot about their future careers within several possible branches.
CDT Carroll best summarized the training: “Challenges like squad relay’s where you can only go as fast as the slowest component make you think outside the box to finish as fast as possible. The team building aspect reinforced the importance of camaraderie to not only get the task done but to work as a cohesive unit, support each other, and build the team on each
other’s strengths.”

Background

Newly Minted MSIVs from Alpha Company have returned to campus following Cadet Summer Training at Fort Knox, KY where they have demonstrated their skills as MSIIIs in individual, squad, and platoon level events. Now, they must work together to plan and execute training similar to those events in order to train the incoming MSIII class.

Execution

The first meeting began on August 19th, 2019 at 0900 with an in brief from the new Company Commander, Cadet Goss, who was named Cadet of the Year for Alpha Company in 2019. Working closely with the First Sergeant, CDT Adler, and the S-3, CDT Davis, CDT Goss began tasking out roles to his subordinate MSIVs in order to begin the planning process for the remainder of the semester. In his office, CDT Goss began drawing up plans for the semester with CDT Davis while creating specific assignments and due dates for each day for every assigned position.

Before the conclusion of the week, the class of MSIVs as a whole got the opportunity to sit with LTC Morris as well as other Cadre and discuss their experiences at Advanced Camp and how their training during their MSIII year helped them there. At the same time, sustains and improves of the previous year were discussed as well as ways in which training can be updated to reflect the differences between CST 2019 and CST 2018. While these changes are mostly to be implemented in weekly leadership labs and Physical Readiness Training, some will affect Military Science class, having the possibility to change the coursework even MSIs are asked to undertake.

Conclusion

By the end of the week, a successful training meeting was conducted after being rehearsed and the new MSIVs had completed the hardest part of their acclimation to their new positions. With plans in place for FTX and six weeks of training planned out completely, the MSIV class was ready to receive the rest of the company and begin the Fall semester’s training. As the clock begins to count down to CST 2020, the MSIV class will continue to work tirelessly to provide the best training and preparation for the Army’s newest generation of Officers.