Army Chief of Staff Deployment Excellence Award

The Army's Deployment Excellence Award program annually recognizes Active Army, National Guard and Reserve units and installations for outstanding deployments and deployment support accomplishments.

The 2004 winners were announced April 30, 2004, and the awards presented by Army Vice Chief of Staff on June 22, 2004, at the 2004 ceremony in Washington, D.C.

The DEA program is open to any unit or installation that have deployed or supported a training or contingency deployment during the competition year (Dec. 1-Nov. 30). Units and installations are encouraged to participate in one of five categories: large unit (battalion and above), small unit (company and below), supporting unit, installation and operational deployment. For all categories except operational deployment, eligible units and installations submit self-nomination packets to their major command. MACOMs forward their top unit packets to an Army level evaluation board that determines semifinalists. A team of deployment specialists visits selected units, validate unit deployment practices, and determine the best unit in each DEA category.

The operational deployment category is open to all units that deploy on operational deployment missions (war on terrorism, peacekeeping rotations, humanitarian missions, etc). Two units are recognized annually--one large unit (battalion or above) and one small unit (company or below). MACOMs nominate units and a deployment observation team from the Deployment Process Modernization Office will observe and score the deployment. This year MACOMs nominated ten units in the operational deployment category.

The 2004 Army Deployment Excellence Award Evaluation Board convened Feb. 17-27, 2004. This year the board selected 20 units as semifinalists and three teams of deployment specialists conducted onsite visits worldwide from March 17, 2004 through April 14, 2004 to validate nomination packets. The board score combined with the validation team's score determined winners.

The 2005 DEA competition is open to all units and installations:

DEA competition period Dec. 1, 2003-Nov. 30, 2004

MACOM nomination packets are due to the DEA board Jan. 31, 2005

DEA board convenes Feb. 14-25, 2005

DA releases message announcing semifinalists-March 11, 2005

DEA validation teams visits March 15-April 15, 2005

DA releases message-announcing winners--April 22, 2005

DEA awards ceremony--June 4, 2005

For additional information, visit the Deployment Process Modernization Office web page (http://www.deploy.eustis.army.mil/DEA/default.htm) to download or to view the awards evaluation criteria, checklists, and sample nomination packet; or contact the DEA Program Manager, Henry Johnson, Building 705, Room 221, Fort Eustis, Va. 23604, DSN 826 -1833, or commercial 757-878-1833.

Mr. Johnson is retired after 30 years active duty having served as a command sergeant major and transportation systems specialist assigned to the Deployment Process Modernization Office at Fort Eustis, Va. He is currently serving as HQDA Deployment Excellence Award program manager.

COPYRIGHT 2004 U.S. Army Signal Center
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group