Army, needing 2nd lieutenants, speeds process for NCOs to become officers [View All]

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* Wasn't it, in part, the poor leadership quality of 2nd LTs that eventually got their rank fragged the most in Vietnam?

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Facing an urgent requirement to field an additional 300 second lieutenants in 2006, Army officials have decided to make it easier for nontraditional officer candidates to enter that career track.

Two-star generals now can sign waivers that would allow Officer Candidate School admission for NCOs who are older than 30 or who may have minor criminal or military offenses on their records, according to a memo sent to Army leaders on May 25.

Previously, all OCS waivers had to come from the Department of the Army itself, according to Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, an Army personnel spokesman. Army leaders decided to delegate OCS waiver authority to lower levels in order “to speed the process” of admissions to OCS, Hilferty told Stripes.

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Speed is of the essence, Hilferty said. Instead of the 4,300 new officers Army officials originally thought they would need to produce in fiscal 2006, the real requirement is 4,600.


http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=29616