By Tara Clements
Fort Belvoir, Va. – A total of 36 candidates were selected for reclassification as a result of the 51C Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) reclassification board held July 30-31, 2013 here.
The final board for the fiscal year was convened by the U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center (USAASC) and administered by the 51C Proponent Office.
“It was a privilege to oversee the final board for the year,” said Lt. Col. Joshua Burris, commander of the 905th Contingency Contracting Battalion. “The candidates were highly qualified making for an extremely competitive selection process for the board members. On behalf of the board, congratulations to our newest 51C NCOs!”
The overall selection rate for FY13 candidates was 29 percent, of which, 92 percent have less than 10 years of time in service. All selectees have some college education with 36 percent holding college degrees and 43 percent with 61 or more college credit hours.
The purpose of the board is to ensure the best qualified NCOs from across the Army are selected for reclassification into military occupational specialty (MOS) 51C, an Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Contracting NCO, which is part of the Army Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Workforce.
This board has particular meaning for Master Sgt. Jason Pitts, chief 51C proponent NCO, who has participated in all 12 boards and is transitioning out of his current position, marking this as his final one.
“I’ve had the privilege of recruiting and assessing some of the Army’s best NCOs into a new career field,” said Pitts. “Serving as a contracting NCO requires the skills of the ‘total Soldier’—someone with outstanding leadership skills, education and performance that sets them apart from their peers. I’m proud that we’ve accomplished our mission this year and am confident that this group of professionals will do great things for the workforce,” he said.
The primary mission for 51C NCOs is to deploy as contingency contracting officers and serve as members of the early entry module contingency contracting team. When not deployed, selected NCOs will serve as contingency contracting officers in support of a headquarters, principal assistant responsible for contracting, contracting support brigades, contingency contracting battalions, and/or installation contracting offices for training and mission support.
USAASC congratulates the following Soldiers for their selection:
| Sgt. | Kevin D. Brown | Staff Sgt. | Judith A. Lommer |
| Staff Sgt. | Chiffon T. Canty | Staff Sgt. | Jonathan Love |
| Sgt. | Dorian N. Christian | Sgt. | KeAndre D. Malone |
| Sgt. (P) | Mark D. Cooley | Sgt. | Michael J. McCollum |
| Sgt. | Sara L. Craig | Staff Sgt. | Ricardo J. Perilla |
| Sgt. | Angel Del Valle Arroyo | Sgt. (P) | Steven R. Rocha |
| Sgt. | Reonel T. Delacruz | Staff Sgt. | Shane A. Sapp |
| Sgt. | Justin R. Deschaine | Sgt. | Jermaine T. Sharples |
| Staff Sgt. | Armando Dominguez Jr. | Sgt. | Robert L. Shedrick |
| Sgt. | Michael D. Floore | Staff Sgt. | Andrew R. Spinazzola |
| Staff Sgt. | Richard L. Green | Sgt. | James D. Sprigler |
| Staff Sgt. | Kendall J. Haynie | Staff Sgt. | Armando J. Torres |
| Staff Sgt. | Paul M. Hernandez | Staff Sgt. | Kevin M. Warren |
| Sgt. | Herbert E. Hernandez-Gonzalez, | Sgt. | Anthony L. Washington |
| Sgt. (P) | Stephen G. Holzworth | Sgt. | Gus W. Wessels |
| Sgt. | Vanity O. Johnson | Sgt. | Christopher J. West |
| Staff Sgt. | Paul A. Kenny | Staff Sgt. | Shatrice L. Willoughby |
| Staff Sgt. | Kevin J. Lipinski | Staff Sgt. | Jeremy L. Zelbst |
Have questions on what it takes to reclassify and what the career track is like? For Soldiers interested in a career change to MOS 51C, USAASC will be hosting a TweetChat on Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2013 from noon to 1 p.m. Details are provided below.
- What: MOS 51C TweetChat
- When: Tuesday, August 27 from 1200 – 1300 Eastern Time
- Who: Get all of your questions answered directly from the USAASC Chief 51C Proponent NCO
- Where: www.twitter.com. Use #51C to join the chat.
- How: Follow @USAASC via Twitter. Starting at noon next Tuesday, send your tweet using #51C
Visit the MOS 51C reclassification web page for more information on how to apply.
Interested in what 51C all about? Find out.
Who is a contracting NCO? Read personal stories of current contracting NCOs:
Master Sgt. Julie Saorrono
Sgt. 1st Class Michael Kahyai
Master Sgt. Cynthia Perryman
