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Change At RMC Change is underway at RMC to fit the altering demands of the Canadian Forces. The following letter has been given wide circulation by the Commandant and has appeared in e-veritas. However, for those who may have missed it I am including it in Recent News. The Commandant addressed the Kingston Branch ExCadet dinner on 24 May, on the subject of change, and why it is needed. General Jocelyn Lacroix gave an excellent address, argued his case very effectively, and truly impressed his audience. I have heard nothing but support for his position from those who attended, an unusual reaction given how conservative ExCadets are about change at the College. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1
May 2006 Members of the RMC
Family CHANGE AT RMC - THE CADET SOCIALIZATION
PROJECT INTRODUCTION 1.
It is perhaps trite to say but important to remember that the world is
changing, Canadian society is changing, and the Canadian Forces are changing.
Some of the aspects of this change most relevant for RMC have been
explored at length in public discourse – more complex operations (the
“three-block war” and the consequent increase in junior officer
responsibility), a less deferential and more individualistic Canadian society
(closer scrutiny of public institutions and recruits with different value
systems and greater expectations of the leaders) and CF Transformation.
Military members are on average older, more experienced and more
sophisticated than in the past. As
well, their buying power has increased considerably since the late 90’s.
Further, they are working in a much more complex environment.
This adds tremendous pressure on today’s graduates of RMC. 2.
My observations, at RMC from 1998 to 2002, my subsequent two years in
command of 5 Brigade in Valcartier, and after my return to RMC last year, lead
me to believe that we may not be preparing our officer-cadets as well as we
could for the increasing responsibilities of command.
The model for leadership development has not changed appreciably for
decades – a four-year residential, highly regulated environment that although
conducive in many respects to predictability and learning has been somewhat
insulated and isolated from the mainstream of the CF despite the periodic influx
of new staff and faculty. Many
officer-cadets leave RMC to experience considerable culture shock on joining new
units, in terms of their self-reliance and life skills.
Eventually, most will develop these during their first and subsequent
unit and staff tours, but in the meantime their effectiveness is not maximized
in an environment of frequent operational rotations and taskings.
RMC does tremendous work in developing leadership, critical thinking,
fitness and second language – I feel that there is room for improvement in the
social preparation of junior officers for the profession of arms. 3.
This led me to initiate a study into the socialization of officer-cadets
at RMC – to determine the impact of implementing a new model that gradually
prepares our junior officers to effectively lead their troops and win their
trust and respect in the shortest possible time after graduation.
A study team was formed with staff and officer-cadets, with the support
of the CF Leadership Institute, to do an estimate of the situation and provide
me with recommendations. I provided
them with the initial guidance that any contemplated changes would have to be
relatively cost-neutral and could not be allowed to undermine the institutional
credibility and cohesion of the College. The
work of this team was carried out between October 2005 and March 2006, after
which I approved two initiatives for the next academic year:
changes to the living-out policy and to daily College dress.
My chain of command, up to and including the CDS, fully supports these
two initiatives. LIVING-OUT POLICY 4.
The objective of this policy change is to increase the opportunity for
fourth year officer-cadets to develop personal responsibility and life skills by
encouraging them to live off College grounds for their final year.
A more independent lifestyle should promote the development of better
personal judgment in balancing competing personal, financial, social and
workplace demands, that will in turn prepare graduates to counsel their
subordinates. Further, I am
convinced that the experiences acquired will accelerate the development of
self-confidence of our young officers as well as accelerate the development of
trust and respect of the troops towards their new young leader.
To ensure that all relevant factors are thoroughly assessed, we will
start next year with a large-scale voluntary trial that will serve to validate
the policy and identify potential problem areas.
Over sixty officer-cadets have expressed interest in participating in the
trial and most have already secured accommodation in downtown Kingston.
Periodic evaluations of the trial will be conducted throughout the next
academic year to assess the impact on the College and make appropriate
adjustments. It is readily
acknowledged that this policy will put additional demands on our fourth-year
officer-cadets and it will undoubtedly change the face of the College somewhat,
but I am confident that everyone will be able to adjust and that the advantages
will ultimately outweigh the disadvantages. COLLEGE DAILY DRESS 5.
The objective of this policy change is to increase the identification of
officer-cadets with the profession of arms and their environment by making the
CF uniform the normal dress of the day. A
deeper understanding by officer-cadets of the service cultures that are
represented by the three distinctive environmental uniforms (DEU) will support
General Hillier’s vision of a more operationally focused, globally relevant
joint force. It will also reinforce
the unity of command by putting officer-cadets in the same dress as other
military members at the College and around the Kingston garrison.
This will mean the retirement of the #5 uniform (white shirt and blue
battle dress jacket), while College dress scarlet (#1) and the ceremonial blue
(#4) will be retained for representational, social and ceremonial use.
Cadet appointments and squadron identification will be retained on daily
dress through the use of a brassard. The
#5 uniform will be formally retired on parade on 12 May 2006 and arrangements
are being made for the appropriate recognition of its historical significance to
RMC. It is important to emphasize
that the withdrawal of one College uniform is not being prompted by the need to
cut costs – it is to align the College and officer-cadets more closely with
the CF CONCLUSION 6.
While I know that many members of the College family are fully in
agreement with and in some cases excited by these impending changes, I also
understand that there are others who do not agree with this approach. I am convinced that we can implement these two new policies
without undermining the cohesion of the College and of the Cadet Wing.
I trust that this letter will at least help readers to better understand
the motivation behind these initiatives. Additional
supporting initiatives will be considered in the months to come - this will
undoubtedly be almost a continual process.
RMC must continue to lead change in the CF, as we have over the past decade with academic program
renewal, athletic restructure and the relevance of the professional military
component. Your support is
important to RMC’s future as we continue to promote the College as the best
possible preparation for young officers joining the profession of arms. J.P.P.J. Lacroix Brigadier-General Commandant ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The following article gives the history of the No. 5 Order of Dress. As a reminder of our age, this uniform with which we all became so familiar will now be displayed in the RMC Museum. The # 5 Order of DressWhat we call the No. 5 Order of Dress, the normal " dress of the day" for Cadets, was introduced at both RMC and RRMC in 1948 when RMC was reopened and the Canadian Service College system was created. The uniform consisted of CSC trousers, shirt, tie, battleblouse and the Field Service (or FS) Cap. The CSC trousers used at the two (and with the opening of CMR in 1952, three) CSCs were the same as the pre-war RMC uniform trousers and the FS cap was also a continuation of a pre-war pattern The Blue Battleblouse adopted by the Canadian Service Colleges was that then in use by the Royal Canadian Navy. The Battledress uniform (which included the Battleblouse) had been introduced in the Canadian army at the start of the Second World War. It was based on a similar pattern uniform adopted by the British army in 1938. During the Second World War both the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal Canadian Navy adopted Battledress for their own use -but in the appropriate colours- light blue for the RCAF and dark blue for the RCN. At RMC the wearing of the Battleblouse as a "Dress of the Day" replaced the pre-war Blue Undress tunic. In 1948, this pre-war, "Dress of the Day" uniform became, for a while at least, the "Full Dress" uniform. When the Scarlet tunic was re-introduced in 1956 as Full Dress, the Blue Tunic reverted to Undress and the Battleblouse stayed on as Dress of the Day. The various orders of Dress were numbered. No. 1, 2 and 3 Order of Dress were variations of the Scarlet tunic. No. 4 Order of Dress was the Blue Undress Tunic and the No. 5 Order of Dress was the Battleblouse. There was also a No. 6 Order of Dress - blue blazer and grey flannels which was abolished about 10 - 15 years ago. RMC was the last Regular Force unit to wear the Battleblouse. RMC retired the "No.5 Order of Dress" at a Wing Parade held 12 May 2006, bringing to an end the use of a uniform jacket that was first introduced into the Canadian Forces some 67 years ago. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Generosity of Today's Cadets The sense of SERVICE is still alive and well at the College. This year's graduating class gift was a donation to the Cancer Clinic at the Kingston General Hospital of $15,000! Two of their class have been stricken with this dreaded disease. I was privileged to receive this very generous gift on behalf of the Board of the Kingston Hospitals Foundation at a parade on 12 May. In addition, the RMC Talent Show raised another $5,000 which the cadets donated to the Kingston hospitals. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Update of Class List I have removed Don Anderson from the list of living classmates. Sean Henry has asked to be included in our class so his name has been added. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Graduation 2006 This year's Graduation Parade had the three Service Chiefs, the Chief of Defence Staff and the Minister of National Defence all in attendance! The importance and visibility of the College has obviously improved markedly over what it has been in recent times. Unfortunately the parade had to be stopped at the halfway point owing to heavy rain with strong winds. The Graduating Class was fallen out and reassmbled with the Navy in the Old Gym, the Army in the Senior Staff Mess, and the Air Force in Yeo Hall. There the Service Chiefs presented each graduate with their commissioning scroll and spoke to the cadets and their families/guests. I attended the Navy ceremony and it was extremely well done. Because it was smaller and more intimate than the usual parade square presentation, the result was very well received. The CDS visited each of the three groups. I later heard that there was the same positive reaction from those who attended the Army and Air Force gatherings. While the size of the College has increased the number of graduates is still around 200.
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