Total Force Integration: Revisiting the Captains to Europe Program.
Abstract
Prior-service experience is one of the most important factors in maintaining an Army National Guard (ARNG) prepared to execute its mobilization mission. An ARNG officer with active duty experience provides the ARNG with a leader skilled in his profession and cognizant of the Army's organizational behaviors. This type of experience is necessary for the ARNG to execute its wartime missions consistent with the Active Component (AC). After the Gulf War in 1991, Congress concluded that AC experience was a critical factor in Reserve Component (RC) unit preparedness for mobilization; so much so, that in 1993, Congress established prior-service experience objectives for the ARNG in a major piece of legislation concerning ARNG readiness. Prior-service experience provides the essential skills and the institutional knowledge critical for the ARNG to mirror the traits, behaviors and organizational patterns of the AC. This paper examines a program conducted in the 1980s, known as 'ARNG Captains to Europe,' that provided a group of ARNG officers with such experience.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 07, 1997
- Accession Number
- ADA327238
Entities
People
- Kenneth H. Newton
Organizations
- United States Army War College