April 2011 - 104th Fighter Wing, Massachusetts Air National Guard

APRIL 2011AIRSCOOPPAGE 4Chief Master Sergeant’s columnBy Chief Master Sgt. Todd Fappiano, Command Chief Master Sgt.The last twoweeks I havebeen attendingtheChiefs LeadershipCourse(CLC) 21March to 1April. The course is conducted atthe Air Force Senior NoncommissionedOfficers Academy, Maxwell-Gunter AFB Alabama. The CLC isa required in-residence course, it’sthe capstone of the enlisted PME,and is for Chiefs and Chief Selects.This facility is incredible; I can tellthat the Air Force is really focusedon the professional development ofour enlisted force. This class is approximately300 students from ActiveDuty, Reserve and the Air NationalGuard. It’s interesting tohear our active counterparts talk ofthe same issues that we have suchas lack of manning, fitness program,funding issues, and communication.We truly are a total force.The CLC provides Chiefswith strategic-level leadershipknowledge that is invaluable to theemployment of air and space forcesin support of national security. Thecurriculum consists of approximately70 hours across three broaddomains; developing Chiefs, theexpeditionary Chief, and the Chiefas a senior enlisted leader/manager. There are some prerequisitesto attending, one iscalled the 360 degree mirror, it’s amulti rater feedback about myselffrom, my supervisor, peers andsubordinates. Thank you to thosewho I sent this to, I owe you one atthe PVC. The feedback returnedenables me to receive insight froma variety of people about my effectivenessas a leader, visionary, andmanager. I learned a lot about myself,my style of leadership, mystrengths and areas for improvement.Notice, they don’t say myweaknesses; everything here isvery positive and is geared towardsself learning and improvement. Italso gave me insight into my personallife, how I deal with my family,my personal friends, and issuesthat come to light on a daily basisin life, in general.Professional Military Educationis very important in yourenlisted career. It starts as an Airmanin Basic, and will continuethroughout your military career.Take it seriously, volunteer forschools, fill those squares, and theresults will make a difference inboth your military career and yourpersonal life.Continuing Resolution Act impacts 104thBy Staff Sgt. Matthew Benedetti, Public Affairs JournalistCaptain Wendy Kiepke hears anF-15 take off and cringes. As theBudget Officer for the 104th,Kiepke is charged with calculatingthe costs of each flight while findingand allocating the funds to keepthe wing operational. Despite thefact operations have increased, herbudget mirrors last year’s figure.Like many of us, she is forced todo more with less. The Wing is currentlyoperating under the constraintsof the Continuing ResolutionAuthority (CRA). This resolutionis a type of appropriations legislationused by Congress to fundgovernment agencies if a formalappropriations bill has not beensigned into law by the end of theCongressional fiscal year.“We are reaching the bottomline authority in Operations andMaintenance for the current CRAextension,” acknowledged Kiepke.“Going forward, orders will be reviewedvery closely by the financeoffice. Any travel order input intothe system for travel dates after 8April may not be approved,” shesaid. “Approval of orders withinmid April will depend on fundingavailability,” she said.“Units may have funds at theunit level but if funds are not availableat the appropriation level, financewill not be able to approvethem-be prudent in your O and Mexecution needs,” she advised.?“IftheCRA isextended,finance will load the additionalauthority and continue on aday to day basis. If the CRA is notextended and a government shutdownwas necessary, all units willbe advised on how to handle theshutdown,” she said.Capt. Kiepke, a Holyoke native,has been a unit member for 20years and this period has been themost challenging economic environmentin her career.“We are proceeding cautiously tokeep planes in the air,” she said.