Defense Civilian Emerging Leader Program

(DCELP)

KEY DATES

• Announcement Opening: April 26, 2021
• Announcement Closing: July 8, 2021
• Board Review Complete: August 2021
• DOD Notification of Selectees (tentative): October 2021
• Course Start (tentative): March 2022

ELIGIBILITY

• Must be a permanent, full time Civilian member of the Army Acquisition Workforce.Must be a GS-07 through GS-12 (or equivalent payband).
• GS-11s and below must be at least Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Level I certified in current acquisition position and within the 24 month grace period (if Level II is not yet achieved) by the date of application submission. GS-12s must meet certification requirement for their current acquisition position by the date of application submission. Certification status must be reflected on the individual’s Acquisition Career Record Brief (ACRB).  NOTE: If you had met your original certification requirement and were recently promoted so that you now require the next level, you may still be eligible for DCELP.  The Army DACM Office DCELP PM will review this on a case-by-case basis.  If this situation defines where you are with your certification, please contact the DCELP Program Manager, listed in the Contact section below.
• Served 3 years, or any combination thereof, in a Department of the Army Civilian Permanent Position(s). This requirement must be met at time of application.
• Completed Civilian Education System (CES):
  • GS-07 through -09 or equivalent payband: CES Basic (EITHER distance learning course OR resident course)
  • GS-10 through -12 or equivalent payband: CES Intermediate (BOTH distance learning AND resident course)

HOW TO APPLY

• Before starting the application, suggest you read this announcement in its entirety to ensure you are aware of all program and application requirements.
• Login at the Career Acquisition Management Portal (CAMP) using the following link: https://apps.asc.army.mil/camp.
• Click on the “CAPPMIS” tab
• Once in CAPPMIS, click the “AAPDS” tab
• Click on “Apply”
• Click on the “Apply” link associated with the event entitled “2022 Defense Civilian Emerging Leader Program (DCELP)”
• Follow the instructions within each section of the application. After you’ve uploaded all pieces of the application, click the “Submit Application” button.  If you would like to save your work and return to the application later, click the “Save” button.
• You must submit your application in AAPDS by 11:59 pm, July 8, 2021.

DETAILS

Location

DCELP Cohort 14 will consist of two resident sessions and two virtual sessions.  The resident sessions will take place at the National Center for Employee Development Conference Center and Hotel in Norman, Oklahoma.  All DCELP participants, including any who might be local to Norman, must stay at the hotel for the resident sessions.

Funding

For Army Acquisition participants selected for DCELP Cohort 14, Acquisition organizations do not have any funding obligations.
DCELP Tuition and Lodging – funded by DOD
DCELP Travel and Per Diem – funded by Army DACM Office

Curriculum

DCELP utilizes a competency-based approach for the deliberate development of individuals with an emphasis on Leading Self and Leading Teams/Projects.  In DCELP, leadership is developed both inside and outside of the classroom.  The program combines community-based learning, guest speakers, group projects, mentoring, and simulations.  Participants engage in assessment tools, knowledge transfer activities, participant writing and briefing projects, and individual coaching.  The program concentrates on the five terminal learning objectives of Know Self, Express Self, Build Teams, Manage Organizations, and Understand the DOD.

Continuous Learning Points (CLPS)

Participants completing DCELP will receive 128 CLPs.  You may add DCELP to your Individual Development Plan; you will find it in CAPPMIS (https://apps.asc.army.mil/camp) under IDP / Planning / Other Training Plan / Add Non-DAU Training.

Start Early!

You are encouraged to start early on the application process. Your immediate and second level supervisors are required to prepare portions of the application and you are strongly advised to engage with these individuals early in the process so that you will have a complete application submitted by the closing date of 8 July 2021.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS / APPLICATION SUBMISSION

Army Acquisition applicants for DCELP Cohort 14 must follow procedures outlined in this announcement.

The documents listed below must be submitted through the CAPPMIS/AAPDS automated system (see How to Apply, above, for instruction on how to access the system).

When a form is provided for you to fill out, you must use the form provided. Applications using the wrong form will be returned to the applicant for correction, as will applications with incorrectly completed forms.

Do not attempt to upload a document that is password-protected or that contains macros as this will cause the process to fail.

• Nominee Information Sheet: Please download the Nominee Information Sheet. Fill out the form, ensuring that all information is accurate.  Upload the completed form (PDF) into your application.
• ACRB: Ensure your ACRB is accurate prior to submitting your application. Your assignment history, training, education, and certification must match the information on your resume. Your ACRB must reflect any degrees you have obtained and the name of the school and year your degrees were completed.  Applicants may update and correct specific fields of their ACRB using the edit ACRB functions within CAPPMIS.  For those areas that cannot be changed by the applicant, the applicant may request assistance in updating their ACRB using the online help request at: https://apps.asc.army.mil/camp/index.cfm?fuseaction=support.helpRequest. Please check the small box next to the ACRB verification link in the application to verify your ACRB is correct.  If this block is not checked, you will receive an error message when you attempt to submit your application.
• Statement of Interest: Please download the Statement of Interest. Fill in the information and upload your completed Statement of Interest (PDF) into your application.  The Statement of Interest should not repeat information in the resume, information sheet or any other materials submitted for the program. Rather, it should focus on why you should be selected as a participant in DCELP.  Address, in 500 words or less, the following:
  • What you consider to be your major strengths and qualifications for DCELP
  • The contributions you will add/bring to the program
  • How will attending DCELP fits into your professional career development plan
  • The return on investment to the Army/your organization and to DOD
• Supervisor Assessment: Please download the Supervisor Assessment. Your immediate supervisor will need to fill in the appropriate information on pages 1-2 and in one location on page 3.  Your second level supervisor will need to sign on page 2. NOTE: This is one of the most important documents during the board review process, therefore it is imperative that the Supervisory Narrative on page 2 be detailed and well-written, addressing the proficiencies on page 1.The Supervisory Narrative must be 250 words or less.  You (the applicant) will also have to sign on page 3 noting you understand the program requirements. After you have received digital and/or hand signatures on all sections, upload the assessment into your application in AAPDS.
• Resume: Please download and review the Resume Template. Use the template to create your Resume using 12 point New Times Roman font with 1 inch margins and a maximum of 6 pages. Upload your Resume (PDF) into your application.
• Current SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action: Upload your current SF-50 (PDF) into your application in AAPDS.
• CES Course Certificate of Completion: You must upload into your application the appropriate CES documentation. For GS-07 through GS-09 (or equivalent payband): CES Basic Course Certificate of Completion. For CES Basic, EITHER the Distance Learning Course OR the Resident Course must be completed. For GS-10 through GS-12 (or equivalent payband): CES Intermediate Course Certificate of Completion. For CES Intermediate, BOTH the Distance Learning (Phase 1) AND the Resident Course (Phase 2) must be completed. Uploaded document must be PDF.

SELECTION PROCESS

The Army DACM Office will administer a Board to review and rate applications.  Applicants will be notified of the status of their application after final results have been approved by DOD, tentatively in October 2021.

DCELP NEWS

CONTACT

(for Army Acquisition only)
Ms. Kristine Faria
IDEAL Program Manager
Army DACM Office
202.604.2507
Email: kristine.e.faria2.civ@mail.mil

If you are not a member of the Army Acquisition Workforce, please visit https://www.dcpas.osd.mil/CTD/Training for more information.