Exam period Nearing an End

Photo by: 26549 OCdt (II) Kai Zhao

ED Note: The formatting of this piece is quite distinct as the e-Veritas volunteer author, 26659 Danielle Andela, combined sentences and phrases from many different first years to create an entire article describing the year.

End of Year Opinions from I Years…

By: 26659 (I) Danielle Andela

Officer and Naval Cadets have gathered from all across Canada to attend their first year as proud members of the Canadian Forces and students of the Royal Military College of Canada. These are the end of year views of the first years who will (in a few short years) be the movers and shakers that drive Royal Military College to excel past its highest levels.

Personally, I think the fact that our first year at Royal Military College is already over is a bit of a shock (OCdt Marshall 26664). It has been a great year, full of new experiences, new friends and plenty of learning (OCdt Williams 26569). Walking out of my final exam of first year was a great feeling of accomplishment, and most of all relief! There’s nothing better than the feeling of not having to worry about studying for a whole summer (NCdt Martin 26617)! It seems a little surreal that a quarter of our time has already passed. I know when the year started, the end of First Year Orientation Period seemed so far away and graduation seemed too far to even think about. But now, it really feels like we’ve made a major step in that direction (Marshall).

While first year at RMC brought several unique challenges, it also taught me a few very important lessons. I learned the importance of friends in our day to day lives (Martin). RMC has been a unique place to come together and meet new people from so many different regions of Canada with distinct cultural ways and personalities (OCdt Andela 26659). Many of the challenges we face at RMC are near impossible to accomplish alone, but when we work together our job becomes much easier, and even enjoyable (Martin)! Teamwork is one thing that has been emphasized time and time again through First Year Orientation Period, the academic year and soon to be Basic Military Officer Qualifications this summer (Andela). I also learned to see the good side of any situation, and to always try to be optimistic. Finally, I learned to be thankful for all that we have at RMC (Martin).

A lot of things are going to change going into second year and there will be new opportunities for us, as students, to get involved in RMC (Andela). I am looking forward to summer training and getting back to RMC in September for school and a new season of rugby (Williams). Personally what I am looking forward to next year is the focus on particular academic programs and interests; more on what we particularly want to do rather than the general first year courses. I am also eager to have the chance to share our knowledge of the first year process as well as techniques to cope with stress with the incoming Officer and Naval Cadets (OCdt Cherry 26653). As well maybe after a year at RMC, people will feel more comfortable in taking initiative with various projects (Marshall).

This coming year promises to be filled with as many if not more experiences and learning as the past year. The 2013-2014 year at RMC is shaping up to be a great year (Williams). I could not pick a better group of people that I would want to spend my four years at the college with. To the Class of 2013, Congratulations (Martin)!

As a personal note from the first year class of 2016, congratulations to the outgoing class of 2013, and we are excited to find what the rest of our careers at this University hold for us. A good job to everybody for making it through nights of hard work, long duty weekends, arduous exam periods and general officership training and good luck in the summer training ahead!

Photo by: 26549 OCdt (II) Kai Zhao

My Internship With the Privy Council Office

By (III) 26173 OCdt Emily Morgan

My name is OCdt Emily Morgan and I am the second cadet from the Royal Military College of Canada (RMCC) to receive an internship placement with agreement from Privy Council Office (PCO). I am currently in my third year of studies at RMCC and I am majoring in History and minoring in Political Sciences. I requested an internship with a Government of Canada agency whose security responsibilities include aspects of intelligence and security. Gaining this experience is valauble to gain a whole of government perspective. On graduation I will be commissioned as a military Intelligence Officer, and I will be able to build on this foundation.

15256 Mr. Jean-Philippe Caron, Executive Director, Security Operations for Security Operations at PCO is also the  Departmental Security Officer (DSO). Mr. Caron arranged for a special assignment to support Dr. Connie Delisle, management and operations of the Departmental Security Officer (DSO) Centre. The Centre was established formally in consultation with the DSO Commuity in June 2013 with view to collaboratively building. DSO Community of Practice inclusive of approx 120 fed depts and 60 small agencies and organizations.

I worked closely with RCMP Superintendent (ret) Tammy Smith to support direct outreach to the DSO Community. I have participated in review and providing recommendations for a security incident; attended Director General level meetings, focus groups and DSO meetings. Specifically, I participated in Operation INTERSECT (law enforcement and first reponders) to assist Supt. Smith in outreach activities such as coordinating Security Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) capability for the DSO community and working with the Security and Intelligence Library Community and DSO Community members to focus and formalize Critical Information Requirements.

I was also part of the Readiness Assurance team to collect observations during the March DSO Exercise, and have been working with MWO Mark West on the DSO Centre’s to formaize the Readiness Assurance Program. My final project for PCO has been a case study of the DSO Community of Practice, focusing on the Defence cluster with the aim to provide Dr. Delisle and Mr. Caron with a diagnostic on the Centre’s sustainability and formalization progress.

This internship has been an invaluable opportunity to gain work experience outside of RMCC and to learn (“what books don’t tell you and people not working in academic areas don’t know”) directly about the role of security and intelligence within the various agencies of the Government of Canada. Being placed at PCO in particular has been an incredible experience, and has given me an insight and understanding of the Government of Canada security community that would have been difficult likely to obtain in a short period of time otherwise.

This internship program has also enabled me to combine academic theory and critical thinking skills with the practical, hands on decision making situations that are essential to manage everyday, as well as unique real-world, situations. This opportunity has provided me experience that cannot be duplicated in a class room. It has also been an excellent chance to network and to learn about the possible careers that exist within government in the fields of security and intelligence.

Having the opportunity to observe, and to participate in, both the military and civilian worlds of intelligence and security, while still at school, has been an invaluable and unique experience. It will help guide my future career ambitions and interests, especially since I am attending RMCC as a Reserve Officer in the Reserve Entry Training Plan (RETP).

I am very grateful for the opportunity to work and to learn through the internship, and I believe that there is no better way to supplement officer training and the fostering of young talent (and enthusiasm) within the Canadian security and intelligence community.

_________________________

Willing to learn – to be open-minded and creative

On the 11th and 12th of April, two Officer Cadets from the Royal Military College of Canada had the unique experience of attending the West Point Negotiations Project at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. The RMCC supervising officer for this project was Captain Sebastien Boucher M.Sc., M.A., CHRP – Lecturer with the Military Psychology and leadership Department.

The ongoing project is an endeavor undertaken by Major Neil Hollenbeck, an accomplished and experienced United States Army officer, and Jeff Weiss, professional negotiator, partner and co-founder at Vantage Partners, and professor of negotiations at West Point, to provide comprehensive and practical training in negotiations to incoming and junior officers in the U.S. Army. This project has also served clientele members of various agencies ranging from FBI Agents to Navy SEALS.

When most think of negotiations they think of the extremes: bartering at a flea market, or a teen convincing his parents to extend his curfew, or a high-stakes hostage situation or high profile business negotiations, a back of forth in concessions until the two parties meet in the middle. What many don’t realize is that leadership itself is an exercise in negotiation, and our junior military leaders are increasingly being put in situations where they must influence human behaviour (often spanning huge cultural and linguistic barriers) without using the forceful tactics that make up the bulk of their training.

As war becomes less shock and awe and more hearts and minds, they way we change our frontline leaders must change too. Not only do they need to be capable of leading a platoon attack, they must also be able convince someone who has grown up thousands of kilometers from Canada with a totally different set of values that working in concert with Canadian efforts in their country is to their benefit. It was out of this need for negotiations skills that span borders and cultures that the West Point Negotiations Project was born.

Regardless of whether they grew up in a sleepy fishing community on the East coast of Canada, the busy streets of Toronto, or even a village compound in Panjwaii, everyone has interests. Through interactive theoretical lectures and practical exercises, the West Point Negotiations Project teaches attendees techniques to get to the heart of these interests, reconcile them with your own, and move forward together without making concessions or meeting in the middle. Attendees learn how employ communications skills, the importance of a good relationship, and also importantly, when to walk away and resort to alternatives.

If you are a leader or future leader in your field, then you will find the training offered by the Project invaluable. To be successful, attendees should be open-minded, willing to learn, and above all things, creative.

We really enjoyed the experience and we are looking at giving a short training session to our colleagues at RMCC in the Fall session.

Submitted by: OCdt Budnikas and OCdt Scott

Time to Relax Before Exams

Photos by 25366 Mike Shewfelt

Every year, in the week leading up to the Christmas exam period, the Cadet Wing gets the opportunity to relax for a night with an early start to the Christmas season. Each Division holds its Divisional Christmas Dinner, and although these occasions are full of ceremony and tradition, the atmosphere is laid back. Superiors serve the subordinates, and the Cadets get to sit back and enjoy a night of food, laughter, and fun.

25601 OCdt (IV) Jeremy Appollini, in A Division, was at their dinner this past Tuesday.

“To celebrate the Christmas season, each of the divisions of the Cadet Wing had their annual Christmas dinner this past week. A Div’s Christmas dinner was the first Christmas dinner at RMC of the season and the first Christmas dinner for many of the First Year Cadets. At the dinner the Cadets enjoyed a relaxing and pleasant traditional turkey meal served by the Training Wing Staff and A Division senior barmen and barwomen in order to mark the end of the first semester, the beginning of the holiday season, and to commemorate the cadets on the continued effort they have put in over the last few months. The delicious food and festive atmosphere made for a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

As is tradition, the youngest Cadet in the division was allowed to make a wish for the rest of the division. This year the wish granted at the A div dinner was permission for the Wing to wear their Combats while writing their exams. This wish, paired with the wishes from the other division dinners will make the exam period significantly less stressful for the Cadet Wing. Overall the Christmas dinner was an agreeable and pleasant way to mark the end of the semester and the beginning of the holiday season.”

B Division’s dinner was held on Wednesday night:

“The traditional RMC Christmas dinner was held for B Division last Wednesday in the Cadet Mess. Marking the end of the Fall semester, cadets enjoyed a full-course holiday feast served by military & civilian staffs, and senior cadets. This festive event was a success and a welcomed break from the academic load of approaching exams. The approved Christmas wish was for civilian dress during working hours on the peninsula.” 25702 OCdt (IV) Megan St-Aubin

26565 OCdt (I) Kyle English was at the C Division Dinner on Thursday night.

“For many Officer Cadets, Officers and staff at The Royal Military College, the C Division Mess Dinner was a culmination to an exciting semester. With the end in sight and just two weeks before cadets would leave for the holidays, all focus could now be set on making it unscathed through an intensive exam period. What better way to mark a preemptive start to the holidays than a belly full of turkey on a Thursday night?

As is customary at Division dinners, the youngest Cadet in C division traded tunics with the Director of Cadets. 26559 OCdt (I) Alexander Landry’s tunic exchange with the Director of Cadets signified the beginning of the final mess dinner of the year for the Cadets of C Div. Another tradition that takes place during the mess dinner is a short speech by the youngest cadet. This Cadet may request one holiday wish from the DCdts, typically one related to the exam period. C Division’s wish was for parking to be allowed on the parade square. After a quip from the DCdts and a round of laughter from all present, the wish was granted, much to the delight of all Officer Cadets.

After all courses had been served by an array of volunteers from the cadet, academic and mil wing, Cadets enjoyed a delicious and festive dinner which truly was a great note to end the semester on.”

Photos from the Dinners (click to enlarge):

Not Everyone Gets to Take It Easy

Article and Photos by 25366 Mike Shewfelt

In our last issue, we told you how for many at the College, this is the time to take leave and slow life down a little. As we found out this past week, however, this is not true for the teaching staff on the campus. As 15595 Dr. Billy Allan, Head of the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, pointed out to us, the summer months are one of the busiest times of the year for the Academic Wing. In many ways, once the students leave, the “real” work begins as professors finally have the time to focus on research and other pursuits.

“Some times the “dog days of summer” are sled-dogs in the traces,” said Dr. Allan.

e-Veritas poked around the Mech & Aero Eng Department to get photos of the busy professors in action. (Click on photos for better viewing. Scroll over for captions.)

What does summer mean for the Officer Cadets…?

Article by 25366 Mike Shewfelt

It is a well-known fact that life for the Cadets at the College follows a cycle, with different pillars taking the forefront at different times of the year. This is true for the staff as well, who,although they face a busy summer (is there ever a time on the peninsula that’s not…?), they still see life taking on a somewhat more relaxed pace as members take leave and others post in or out of the peninsula (last week’s Change of Appointment Ceremony being a good example of this). But what does summer mean from a Cadet’s perspective…? Training, training, and more training, right…? For the hundreds of Cadets on courses all over the country right now, that is their summer in a nutshell. For the Cadets still on the peninsula, though, the answer is not as clear cut.

The Cadets doing Second Language Training, On the Job Education, or Engineering Decompression certainly have their training to do, but there is much more to their summer than that. Summer, for them, is about sitting in class, looking at the beautiful weather outside, and hoping your professor will notice the blue sky, realize that no one really wants to be there, and let you go early for the day. (It actually has happened before.) Summer is the good times in Kingston on the weekends (like the 5 day weekend some had for Canada Day), or for those lucky enough to have a car, getting out of town for a day or two. It’s the Civi Fridays, beach volleyball behind the parade square, the dreaded Sea Cadet invasion, and much more besides. In short, it’s the memories, and the (somewhat) relaxed atmosphere that makes those memories possible.

Walking around the College right now, one gets the impression that, whatever summer is about this year, it’s not that. “Only 4 more days until I’m out of this place,” was a common sentiment in the week leading up to the Canada Day long weekend, and similar ones have been heard about August (most summer courses at the College are done in the first week of August). Granted, Cadets are always griping about something, but it’s summer on the peninsula, and life could always be much worse. They could be in Gagetown, for example.

So what to do about it…? From a Cadet perspective, make the memories, and hope that your professor notices the beautiful summer weather and wants to be out enjoying it as much as you do.

A Learning Experience in Panet House

Article by 25366 Mike Shewfelt

As a Cadet who recently finished four years at the College, I can say that during my time in the Cadet Wing I knew very little about the RMC Club, both in terms of what it does and just how extensive it is. I would venture a guess that most Cadets currently in the Wing are in the same boat. We know that the Club exists, we know that it puts out both e-Veritas and the hard copy magazine, we know where Panet House is, and that’s about it. Oh, and the fact that the Club runs the gift shop, which is useful to know whenever our families come to visit. And frankly, until such time as we find ourselves somewhere in the future trying to reconnect with old classmates, that’s about all we want to know. We don’t have much need of the Club’s services right now, but we will sometime in the future, and that’s OK.

That said, I have now spent six months working for e-Veritas, and my time in Panet House has helped to change my view on the RMC Club somewhat. I am constantly amazed at just how big the Club is, both in terms of numbers and geographically. As part of my job with e-Veritas, I have talked to ex-Cadets from all walks of life and from all over the country, and even a few scattered around the world. I have talked to people working in positions where I never would have dreamed an RMC grad would end up. There are ex-Cadets everywhere, which you realize as soon as you start to look for them.

I have also had the opportunity to see the many ways in which the Club supports current Cadets. I have seen the Club highlight the achievements of Cadets for the public, raising awareness in the local community of just what it is that goes on here on the peninsula. (And thanks to e-Veritas, that happens not just in Kingston, either.) I have seen firsthand, too, the influence that Club members have right across the country, and I have seen Club members use that influence to help Cadets out when they are in need.

The RMC Club may still be geared towards ex-Cadets, and as an alumni association, that’s not a bad thing, but as I am learning, the Club is there to help current Cadets, too. The Club is extensive, it has a lot of influence, and it is there when Cadets need it, no matter how long they have been out of of the College, or whether they are still on the campus grounds.

Editor’s Note: Last week e-Veritas gave you a cadet-level perspective on the issues of the current transition into summer training that is now wrapping up at RMCC. We now present the other side of the story. 

As They See It: RMCC Chief Instructor’s Office Tackles Complex Problems to Get Cadets on Training

Article by 25494 A/SLt Kristopher Hicks and 24554 NCdt Francis Montagnese

At the end of each academic year, hundreds of officer and naval Cadets from RMCC are posted out for the summer months to conduct various phases of training. This year upwards of 1000 Cadets are dispersed across the country. Of these, roughly 270 newly commissioned 2Lt’s and A/Slt’s were posted out of RMCC to begin their careers in the CF. To the untrained eye this may all seem to just happen, but I assure you, it takes hours upon hours of coordination through multiple bases and managing authorities to get OCdt Bloggins posted to Winnipeg. It is an extremely complex process that can be very formidable for the small team at the Chief Instructor’s Office. Each member’s summer posting, whether for phase training, On the Job Education/Training (OJE/OJT), or even Second Language Training, requires a great deal of coordination, diligence, and communication.

Since early in the winter semester, the members of the Chief Instructor’s (CI) office, Maj Parent, 19426 Capt Wendland, Capt Carpenter, WO Harper, 24971 2Lt Lee, 25104 2Lt White (recently posted to CFB Trenton), 24554 NCdt Montagnese and the recent addition of 25720 OCdt (IV) LaVine, have been working tirelessly to ensure all of the members of RMCC are efficiently posted to their training units to be gainfully employed or to participate in training during the summer months. In this effort, this team has been in constant communication with ten different Managing Authorities (MA’s) in varying time zones across the country. The Training and Staff Officer of Careers offices work closely with the MA’s who coordinate with the Chain of Command and the various CF bases or organizations Cadets are sent to. They are essentially split into two offices: the Training office deals with the organization of summer training for returning Cadets, and the Staff Officer of Careers office coordinating postings for all of the graduating cadets. The management of house hunting trips, claims, and posting messages are all important aspects of the process that must pass through the CI’s office before it can be fully resolved.

Despite the office’s best efforts, the process is not perfect. Each year, the office encounters numerous challenges that require thoughtful and timely solutions. A myriad of reasons can change training or posting messages, including the needs of the service, personal and medical situations, addition of spouses, VOT-Us (Voluntary Occupational Transfer – Untrained), and academic program changes and deficiencies, among others. All of these issues take time to resolve. Luckily, the flexibility and care of the CI’s team allows effective discovery of solutions and the selection of the best course of action.

To enlighten you on the numbers that we deal with, there are over 100 cadets in Gagetown completing training right now, as well as over 250 cadets in St-Jean on their Basic Military Officer Qualification and SOLET (Second Official Language Education and Training) courses, and 12 cadets participating in the Nijmegen marches. Many others are in Newfoundland, Esquimalt, Halifax, Portage, various cadet camps, or academic training on Engineering Decompression. One deserving cadet is even at the Florida Space School for OJE. Without the hard work of the Chief Instructor’s office, complimented by the efforts of the Cadet Orderly Room and all others involved, coordinating the summer training and postings of our vast and diverse Wing would surely be impossible.

25366 NCdt Mike Shewfelt also had the opportunity to sit down with Maj Parent and members of his team to get more details on the situation as they see it. 

Maj Parent took the opportunity to highlight the accomplishments of the members of team, specifically 25720 OCdt (IV) Cindy Lavine and 24554 NCdt Francis Montagnese. OCdt Lavine, who recently took over from 2Lt White, was responsible for the assignment of Cadets in summer training jobs.

“I have probably dealt with 500 to 600 individuals,” OCdt Lavine explained, “and personally found jobs for 100 or so of those. As an example of the amount of work involved, we recently sent nine Cadets to CFLAWC (the Canadian Forces Land Advanced Warfare Centre) when their original posting fell through. That alone took about twenty hours or so to resolve.”

The most important part of the job, she said, are the compassionate taskings, such as those involving family reasons, that the team is able to arrange for Cadets. As she put it, “We are very flexible.”

OCdt Lavine took over for 2Lt White, who was recently posted to CFB Trenton. The transition was not an easy one: “When I came into the job, I had no contacts whatsoever, and no idea of really what to do, so it has been grueling and very stressful.”

Nonetheless, Maj Parent praised her work. “She’s working in what is really a Captain’s position,” he said. “She is representing RMCC to Captains, Majors, and Lieutenant Colonels, and she has done that exceptionally well.”

Fortunately for OCdt Lavine, the worst is now over. The focus will now shift to the return of individuals from summer training, for medical reasons and the like, and ensuring that these individuals are gainfully employed throughout the rest of the summer months. (OCdt Lavine may not be around for that, however. She currently works on Maj Parent’s staff due to an injury sustained on this year’s Sandhurst competition. If she receives a clean bill of health, she could be on her Common Army Phase Training (CAP) within a week.)

NCdt Montagnese, on the other hand, dealt with posting messages for the graduating Cadets. This is a lengthy process, since the Class of 2012 had over 260 graduates, and as such work on this began back in the Fall Semester.

“It’s a very complex process,” said NCdt Montagnese. “We work with the Managing Authorities and CF units to generate the final posting messages, but there are many things that can change these messages before they are generated, or even afterwards. People getting married is a big one, as they want to be posted together, but the biggest reason things change is the needs of the service. As the process takes so long, positions can be filled before the graduate arrives at the unit, and then we have to find them another posting. We had one graduate whose posting message was changed four times, for example.”

House Hunting Trips are another headache, he said. “We may have the posting message, and the member may have the message, but the trips are coordinated through the Brookfield Moving Company. They have to have the posting messages, too, and they don’t receive them from us.”

Both Maj Parent and Capt Wendland praised the work of the two Cadets in dealing with such a difficult situation. “RMCC Cadets are virtually everywhere,” Capt Wendland remarked. “There is hardly a base in the CF that we have not coordinated with.”

Maj Parent expressed similar sentiments. “There is no other CF unit that deals with this situation like we do. No one else has the responsibility for posting and training such a large number of people at the same time, and so much of the solution to the problem is out of our control. The finances for this, for example, come from the units themselves, not from us. We have to wait on them to get that in order. Unfortunately, there are people that are still waiting for a resolution to their situation. These individuals are very few right now, but they are there. That’s unfortunate, but given the complexity of this situation, it’s not surprising.”

As I See It…

Article and Photos by 25366 Mike Shewfelt

Cadet life at RMC always has its ups and downs, but rarely more so, it seems, than during the summer months. The Wing has scattered across the country for summer training, but for those who remain, life has been anything but settled. This is the first time that I have been here on campus in the end of May and beginning of June, and it is an eye opening experience. This experience is heightened both by being in Holding Platoon, and thus on the outside looking in on the Wing, and also by just having returned from three weeks of leave.

I left knowing I would miss the chaos of Grad Week, and I expected that by the time I returned the College atmosphere would have calmed down some. What I found upon returning, however, was in many ways more of the same. Graduating Cadets were still here after encountering difficulties with their posting messages, almost two weeks after marching through the Arch, and there have been many issues with posting messages for Cadets going on summer training. Transient rooms were full, and Cadets were sleeping in the recently vacated rooms in Fort Lasalle. The Cadets doing Second Language Training on campus were still waiting to get into the summer rooms when I arrived, and as of writing this, it seems there may not be enough rooms to go around. All of that, though, is business as usual for the staff this time of year. When asked about it, they laugh and shake their heads.

The Cadets have taken the chaos of the last few weeks in stride. They may gripe a little, but they laugh it off, and make the most of the situation, settling in for the summer while enjoying eating their meals in the Senior Staff Mess, a place most Cadets rarely ever venture into. The Cadets of RMC are resilient, and they continue to show it by staying on top of whatever College life brings their way.