Comptroller training flight

When I last infiltrated your worlds, I was somewhere between squeezing blood from a turnip and J shooting billiards with a rope in my desperate search for a suitable topic for this magazine. Well, this quarter, I didn't even have to wring my brain very long. I was approached by one of our instructors on the staff interested in telling his story. What better way to send a message from our front lines than to let one of our very own schoolhouse warriors fill this page ... and no, Madame Editor, it had nothing to do with my trying to avoid one of your deadlines! So, without further adieu, I offer you the literary stylings of TSgt Greg Krems, one of our 7-level instructors.

After instructing at the Keesler AFB Comptroller Schoolhouse for a little over a year now, I expressed a desire to share some experiences and events that have happened over the last year. I originally PCS'd to Keesler AFB July 2002 and found myself looking at a building still under renovation, new furniture unassembled, and twenty one classrooms that needed to be made ready. Some of my fellow comptroller staff had attended Basic Instructor Course (BIC) already and were at Sheppard AFB learning how to instruct from the current comptroller instructors on duty. Another group of instructors were waiting to attend BIC here at Keesler AFB prior to sitting behind those newly trained Sheppard AFB instructors. Of course with any move or PCS there were a few bumps in the road, from finding our flight commander a new desk to having all 500 computers arrive from Sheppard AFB. Having no place to put the computers, we stored them in the flight commander's office because none of the classrooms had locks in the doors yet (Flt/CC comment: it has nothing to do with the size of my office). Eventually it all worked out, but needless to say this was only the beginning of a very eventful year.

28 October 2002 marked the official beginning of Financial Management and Comptroller Training at Keesler AFB with the start of Class 021028, Comptroller Craftsmen Course. I taught my first 7-level class on 5 December 2002, and it sure was an eye-opening experience. Sure, after going through BIC and watching how the other instructors taught, you start to get a little confident in your teaching style. Suddenly, five minutes into the lecture I started feeling the sweat trickle down my back, and I kept asking myself if it was kind of hot in the classroom. I learned many things from that first class, especially the do's and don'ts.

In one of my first classes I had an individual ask me ift my becoming an instructor would hurt my future promotions because I didn't supervise anyone. The truth of the matter is I actually supervise 9-12 students every two weeks. When you walk into your classroom, it is your work environment, and you must set the tone for the class. I have issued Letters of Counseling, notified a few individuals they just received PCS orders, and even dealt with an emergency leave situation. I also had to brush up on AFI 36-2903, Dress and Appearance Standards, due to the fact that the non-prior service students are very impressionable. Never having a female work for me before and now suddenly half the class was female, I needed to quickly learn the female dress and appearance standards. I had to learn what a princess cut shirt was and whether or not you needed to wear a belt on some of the older types of blues that didn't even have belt loops. The most unique situation happened when an individual came to class wearing a long sleeve blue shirt, and half way through class he rolled up his sleeves. When I mentioned to him it wasn't allowed, he stated that he just didn't want to get his sleeves dirty. Overall, the 7-Level students were great, and I heard about great things going on at bases around the world. I have also been able to hear true war stories about prior 7-Level students driving over the Iraqi border in order to open up the first finance office at Baghdad International Airport.

I have had many students ask about becoming an instructor and what the pros and cons of instructing are. I know being an instructor is not for everyone, but I know it is a great career move for many individuals. Some of the many benefits of being an instructor are stable family lives due to non-deployment status, standard work hours so you are able to attend college classes, having a chance to mentor the future career field, and always knowing what's happening within the career field. People often joke that the schoolhouse is the belly button of the career field, but in reality it is. We have had more guest speakers, visitors, and ASMC luncheons than I have ever seen in my career. I have had generals, colonels, chiefs, superintendents, and various other top civilian officials all stop in and talk to my various classes. Keesler AFB has also been a great base to be assigned to with a whole assortment of things to do and places to go. You can ask any of my past students about the great places to eat around here.

Many students have walked these halls in the last year. We have even had a few repeat customers. Just the other day a student who was in my 7-level class in January was back for a travel pay supplemental class. We are continually training some of the brightest and sharpest people in the Air Force. As the AETC mission states The First Command ... Recruiting, training, and educating professional airmen to sustain the combat capability of America's Air Force, I can truly say we are accomplishing that mission. Over the last year I have taught over 250 outstanding students, and am proud to say that the future of the Financial Management career field looks great.

COPYRIGHT 2004 U.S. Air Force, Financial Management and Comptroller
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group