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thedrifter
01-27-06, 12:36 PM
Board member advises Marines on promotion preparation
MCB Quantico
Story by: Cpl. Susan Smith

MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va.(Jan. 26, 2006) -- In a career which promotions don’t just fall into your lap, Marines need to take time to prepare a competitive package for submission to a staff noncommissioned officer board.

“Marines should take ownership of their career,” said Master Gunnery Sgt. William O. Nix, Marine Corps Base Quantico’s personnel division chief. “They have to realize that they are their best advocate when it comes to preparing themselves for promotion.”

Nix was a member of the fiscal year 2006 master sergeant through sergeant major selection board. He briefed more than 220 packages for the board and has underlined different aspects of what the board looks for to help SNCO better prepare.

Resident and non-resident courses

Guidance from the commandant of the Marine Corps directed the board members to select the best and most fully-qualified Marines for promotion, Nix said. With this guidance in mind, the members reviewed each Marine’s book to see if he or she met the minimum requirements for Period of Military Education courses. Although there is a waiver in place to excuse Marines from meeting the requirements due to the increased operational tempo, the board members looked to see who was able to complete them and who went even further with their education.

For a variety of reasons, some Marines do not have the opportunity to attend resident courses, Nix said. If that is the case, the board members reviewed the packages to see if they took advantage of the available non-resident courses.

“I made a distinction between Marines in a deployed operational unit who had completed their non-resident course, but hadn’t been able to attend the non-resident course,” Nix said, “and I compared that to Marines who had not been deployed where they stood as far as PME completion.”

Photographs

Some packages were submitted without a photo, and guidance from the commandant required that in the absence of a photo the board members look through the records to determine the Marine’s height, weight and body fat percentage.

“We had deployed Marines in a combat environment who submitted digital photos in their cammies, and then we had Marines stateside who didn’t submit a photo at all,” he said. “This showed what the Marine did for himself or herself to prepare for promotion.”

Nix advises Marines to take a peer with them to make sure they look squared away in the photograph.

Fitness reports

Not every Marine has the opportunity to go to combat, but some have multiple combat tours.
“When it came to fit-reps, I looked at what the Marine was required to do by the Marine Corps and how well that Marine accomplished whatever the mission he had,” Nix explained. “Bloom where you are planted.”

The Marine Corps promotes based on the ability of a Marine to perform at the next higher grade, and one of the only ways for a promotion board to judge that ability is by reviewing past performances as recorded on performance reviews. Because of this, date gaps between fitness reports, especially in-grade, make that Marine less competitive compared to other Marines with full records.

Although the board had the ability to request the status of the missing fitness reports through HQMC, so did that Marine. Instances like this showed the board who took the time to thoroughly review their records, and who did not, Nix said.

Duty assignments

The board members looked for Marines who might be “homesteading.” A Marine may be considered to be homesteading if they have been stationed in one area for an extended period of time. For example, a Marine serving a full tour at Quantico who transfers to Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington for a tour and then to Marine Helicopter Squadron 1 at Marine Corps Air Facility Quantico could be considered homesteading, Nix said.

“There are Marines who are on a second or third deployment who need a break, and then there are Marines here who are not moving.”

In their after action report, the selection board highly recommended Marines avoid homesteading.

Letters of recommendation, explanation

Letters of recommendation are most commonly submitted by past or present commanding officers, executive officers and senior enlisted Marines who have worked with the leathernecks competing for promotion.

Letters of explanation are a way for Marines to explain any adverse material or perceived adverse material that may be in their record. One letter of explanation helped a Marine defend herself from what appeared to be homesteading.

“This Marine seemed to be spending a lot of time at Quantico,” Nix said. “She would go overseas for a year and then come right back.”

The letter from her former commanding officer explained that the Marine’s mother was a member of the Exceptional Family Member Program. By being stationed at Quantico, her mother was able to receive the care she needed from the surrounding medical facilities.

Other Marines submitted letters simply stating that they are happy to serve and ready to accept the responsibility of the next grade.

Official Military Personnel File

An OMPF is the complete history of a Marine’s service record. While HQMC maintains the files, it is each Marine’s responsibility to make sure it is current and correct.

“I prepared two packages with derogatory or adverse material in their OMPF that was not theirs a page 11 entry and a (non-judicial punishment),” Nix said. “It was their names, first and last, but not their social security numbers.”

Quantico Marines can obtain a copy of their OMPF by stopping by the Personnel Management Support Branch at Building 2008. All Marines can request a copy by e-mailing MMSB at smb.manpower.mmsb@usmc.mil.

Ellie