Posted by Adam W. in Question for All Candidates

Posted by Katherine Dedul in Question for All Candidates
I have a general question for all candidates.

It seems every single election the Academy comes up and invariably what happens is people seem to think there’s a problem that needs “solving” and also that this problem “can be solved”. I have been involved in the Academy in some way for years now, to varying degrees and it really strikes me as odd that this becomes an issue each election and that the problems suddenly come out of the woodwork rather than being brought to the attention of the currently appointed Commandant. Or at the very least the Vice Commandant or AFLO so that they could get the message to the Commandant. Sometimes problems are not obvious to the staff members because they aren’t actively mentioned on the ship boards (for example, I obviously don’t monitor the emails my COs send because I literally can’t unless they copy me).

So, do you feel like the Academy is a “problem area”? Why?

No, there is no reason to think this is currently the case. Both Academy ships have quite active staffs and they are being led by command crews that understand what the Academy is supposed to do and its fundamental concepts. As you know since you were one of the people dealing with it, the Academy did have major problems the most recent time I was Vice President. Thanks to the efforts of several people we’ve moved on and the problems of the past two years there have not been on that same scope. And right now in particular as far as I can tell it is in great shape to carry out its primary mission of teaching the basics of roleplaying at STF to cadets.

The Academy is inheriting an area that needs some work, which is overseeing the Mentorship Program. It’s often been neglected under the oversight of the Personnel Department. The President should be aware that tackling that will be a challenging task for the Academy this coming term.

And the Academy does need some advertising of the Command Mentorship Program. The Command Mentorship Program is something I feel most people don’t know about, especially those who potentially could benefit from signing up for it. And for those reading who don’t know, it’s a simple program described on the Academy’s MOTD that allows for personal mentorship for those who want to learn to be a DH, XO, or CO.

Also, why did you not see the use in bringing it to my attention as the currently appointed Commandant? Or if you discovered this problem prior to my appointment, to that currently appointed Commandant?

I think that’s it for now, but I may have follow ups to your answers. :)

Thanks
-Kat

This question may not exactly apply given how I’ve answered. But I’ll address this question in regards to the Command Mentorship Program. I was involved in launching it as Vice President and as AFLO. As the past two terms have gone by it’s gradually become more obvious to me that the program should be promoted. It hasn’t been an urgent need or a problem really, but in a position of oversight over the Academy I’d want to see us take advantage of the groundwork that has been laid. Indeed, keeping the work of previoius terms going is a major theme in our campaign.

Adam
Adam W / Thomas B

Thanks for the answer Adam. I have no follow up at this time. :)

-Kat