[PAO] [Bulk] Re: New CAPP 201 - Public Affairs Officer Specialty Track

Tue Aug 12 10:31:53 CDT 2014

Steven,

Thanks for including your comments in the latest ‘unofficial’ rendition of a long-standing debate.

Personally, I was pleased to see action finally being taken to update the P201 specialty track.  Though, since 2010, my main point of contention has always been the absence of the P201 online exams; which are still suspiciously omitted from any NHQ/PA announcement or comment. Do you have a target date for release?

I thank the working group and the national staff for their efforts to update the P201 specialty track. The results definitely look good on paper, though it is quickly becoming obvious that it is not a perfect answer. I read somewhere that NHQ/PA wanted to update this written guidance on a biennial basis. Considering how slowly the wheels turn, perhaps NHQ/PA should put together the next working group now to begin the process of revision so that the next version can be ready in a timely manner.

I agree the E-388 course in Emmitsburg, MD is bargain-priced (free).  Spending a week on the EMI campus near Camp David and the Gettysburg Memorial is an outstanding opportunity. I still question how easy it will be for CAP members to make it through the hand-selected admission process.  Maybe at best, a couple of seats per year.   

Over the past nine years that I have been with CAP, I have witnessed numerous examples of edicts being issued from on high followed by a scramble to come up with an effective manner to get members in compliance.  This lack of foresight is an irritant to the troops and many talented members leave because of the repeated folly caused by a deficiency in leadership’s vision.  If a requirement is established, the programing needs to include corresponding support to assist the members in meeting the requirements. The token offer of G-289/G-290 at the national conference is a first step but is not sufficient to meet the needs of the organization. 

I believe much of the push-back about the new CAPP201 is because half of the equation is missing. The members have not been provided with a reasonable solution to meet the higher standards.  It appears that a roadblock has been established rather than a pathway to a higher plane. 

High standards can be good and offer a measuring stick for progress. If we want a robust CAP public affairs/mission information program, we need to focus on growing the people. The attitude of “hey, this is what you get; you choose” is not transformational leadership. It lacks inspiration, it lacks vision.  There is no doubt in my mind the solution will require effort on a region, wing, group, and squadron level. The role at the top is not just doing PA tasks for HQ, it also involves providing quality leadership for the subordinate unit personnel. No one said that life was easy at the top.

Enjoy your time in Las Vegas!

Jeff Carlson

PAO/PIO

Civil Air Patrol     

From: cap-pao-bounces at lists.sempervigilans.org [mailto:cap-pao-bounces at lists.sempervigilans.org] On Behalf Of Steven Solomon
Sent: Tuesday, August 12, 2014 9:43 AM
To: CAP Public Affairs Officers
Cc: Joseph A Guimond Jr; Salvador, John; Julie Debardelaben
Subject: Re: [PAO] [Bulk] Re: New CAPP 201 - Public Affairs Officer Specialty Track

I'm in Las Vegas now for the National PAO Academy being offered today and tomorrow, having just finished up two weeks as a Cadet Officer School flight instructor at Maxwell AFB Base. I see that there has been much discussion the last few days about the revised PAO Specialty Track released on July 25. I strongly urge that comments and suggestions go through the chain of command in order to be considered official, but I'd like to address the concerns that have been raised on this forum. 

It had been 14 years since the track was issued, so an update was long overdue. Many CAP PAOs, including SER PAO Jeff Carlson, were extremely anxious that the PA track be updated, especially because the A4/6 (formerly AFIADL and before that ECI) CAP Public Affairs Officer 02010 correspondence course was no longer available, had not been replaced, and was still required to satisfy the CAPP 201 Technician Rating (3d) requirement.

So a National Level PA Working Group approved by the National CC, consisting of NATCAPWG PAO Lt Col Paul Cianciolo, ILWG PAO Lt Col Paul Hertel and RMR PAO Lt Col Al Nash, made recommendations that NHQ/PA Deputy Director of PA Julie Debardelaben, myself, and SWR PAO Lt Col Arthur Woodgate polished. Col Bryan Cooper, National Professional Development Officer, and Bobbie Tourville, NHQ Professional Development Chief, completed the project. 

As I privately told SDWG PAO Maj Bruce Kipp, who started the discussion on this list-serve, our thinking is that CAP PAOs/PIOs are being assigned to increasingly complex and challenging missions, often alongside other federal agencies, and need to be NIMS compliant like our counterparts because even though we are all volunteers and not paid, we need to be as professional as the professionals we are being deployed to work alongside. 

We offered G-289 yesterday here in Las Vegas before the two-day National PAO Academy, and are planning on offering G-290 next year. The registration fee for the E-388 course at the Emergency Management Institute in Emmitsburg, Md. is waived for CAP members, and transportation costs are also covered. So, taking E-388 is actually easier than taking Region or National Staff College, both of which are required for advancing through the CAP professional development process. 

In the end though, it is up to every CAP officer to decide what track and what level they pursue. I can't speak for whomever succeeds me in my national position someday, but I suspect that the requirements will only get harder as we continue to study and accept the public affairs strategies and tools constantly being developed. In my opinion, it's an ongoing process. 

Regards,

Steven

STEVEN SOLOMON, Lt Col, CAP

National Public Affairs Officer
Civil Air Patrol National Headquarters
105 South Hansell St., Building 714
Maxwell AFB AL 36112-5937

 <mailto:ssolomon at cap.gov> s <mailto:ssolomon at cap.gov> solomon at cap.gov

Cell:  <tel:240-505-6279> 240-505-6279

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On Tue, Aug 12, 2014 at 3:25 AM, lockit3 <lockit3 at att.net> wrote:

You have both stated the case well. This is why we must realize the PAO and PIO jobs ARE very different. Also, this is why the new FEMA course requirements should be part of moving through multi-level PIO ratings not PAO ratings. We have multi levels for GMT and not for PIO, yet we feel that PAO’s can do the PIO job.

Thank you,

Curtis “Wayne” Hooks 1st Lt.

Civil Air Patrol

FLWG Online Newsfeed Manager

Group 1 Public Affairs Officer

Group 1 Recruitment and Retention Officer

Tallahassee Composite Squadron

Ser FL-432

Public Affairs Officer

Recruitment and Retention Officer

From:  <mailto:cap-pao-bounces at lists.sempervigilans.org> cap-pao-bounces at lists.sempervigilans.org [mailto: <mailto:cap-pao-bounces at lists.sempervigilans.org> cap-pao-bounces at lists.sempervigilans.org] On Behalf Of Alice Mansell
Sent: Tuesday, August 12, 2014 4:21 AM
To:  <mailto:wweiler at flwg.us> wweiler at flwg.us; CAP Public Affairs Officers
Subject: [Bulk] Re: [PAO] New CAPP 201 - Public Affairs Officer Specialty Track

Wow, Bill!  You articulated so many fabulous thoughts on the deeper issue.

Absolutely agree with all you wrote, especially the need for different PIO ratings.   I, also, have worked in JICs with military, federal agency, and state government information officers.  Some random thoughts from those JICs:

- The CAP golf shirt works there the best. Any white aviator shirt gets too many confused reactions and to wear the USAF style uniform, one must truly meet military weight and grooming standards to have rapport with any military personnel present who can be a daily shifting cast of people.

- In JICs, once trusted by the lead informaton officer, a CAP member may end up doing as much work to get the word out for "other" agencies as our own, even for just internal CAP use.  Whatever the incident commander thinks is the main messaging is more important than CAP ringing its own bell during a real mission or exercise with field operations.

- It is truly fun to work in JICs..... but they can be a steep learning curve in situations where it might take 5+ hours for every agency-stuck-in-silos to approve press releases.  CAP should be able to delegate "our" such approvals to regionally approved PIO3s who can train, mentor, and/or supervise PIO2s and PIO1s.

I recall well how my Wing was one of the first to make sure only the most vetted and experienced mission coordinators (ICs now) were allowed to run real missing aircraft missions...and how it can take years to earn that duty assignment by consistently demonstrating quality skills in difficult situations.   The days of a mission PIO being whatever warm body is willing to write a paragraph or talk to the press should stop.

-Alice

On Monday, August 11, 2014, Bill Weiler CAP < <mailto:wweiler at flwg.us> wweiler at flwg.us> wrote:
> Some great ideas and valid complaints have been posted here, but we've danced around one of the real problems I see as an IC, PIO, and PAO.
>
> We have 3 levels of ICs, and with the diverse missions we conduct, 1 level of PIO just doesn't make sense to me. An IC3 can do ELT missions, SAREXs, and a multitude of small missions, but if it's a REDCAP or multi-agency mission an IC2 is required. A PAO with a little basic training can be PIO for a local SAREX or even a simple ELT mission, and learn a lot about 1/3 of CAP's mission while helping the local unit and team. The current PIO requirements are completely inadequate for a REDCAP or a Deepwater Horizon, and I spent weeks in the JIC at Mobile and Tallahassee for Deepwater. The only non-CAP classroom training for the current PIO is a local FEMA weekend course that shouldn't be too hard for any PAO/PIO candidate to attend, and it's a great networking opportunity with both the local media and ES community. Make the current basic PIO course a PIO 2 and make that the only PIO requirement for a PAO Master Rating with no additional FEMA training that most non-PIO PAOs don't need. A Master Rated PAO should understand the role of a PIO and what's entailed, but may not be well suited to ever serve as a PIO in a critical mission. The experience will help them help the PIO if needed and will help the local unit.
>
> With 40+ years experience in the ES community doing PAO/PIO work, gaining the trust and respect of other PIOs and ICs at a JIC is easy working side by side with them. Also being an IC helps. I've had a much more difficult time gaining the trust and authority I need for big missions from our own chain of command and organization - along with the AF. I can't say I blame them considering how elementary our PIO qualification currently is, and how many people with the qual are not ready for prime time. If we add the FEMA 200 and 300 PIO courses to a PIO 1 qualification, along with a few other requirements, we'll ensure that a PIO 1 can step into any mission without needing constant handholding, will truly know what can and cannot be said, and will be part of the JIC/IC team able to get the CAP story out real-time.
>
> Long before the term PIO was conceived, in 1969, I was the face for a multi-fatality snow slide, and I've done dozens of serious and fatal plane crashes since then with the sheriff and even FAA and NTSB asking me to be part of the media QA team. Now, when invited by the FEMA and USCG members of a JIC to be part of a media event I had to decline because the CAP chain required 48-72 hour advance notice and a review of what might be discussed before being authorized to be part of the event - that was called at the last minute. Maybe I've gotten that bad over the years, but I really think it's because we don't have an internal way of proving some PIOs are experienced enough and well trained enough to do their job unless they're personally known or micromanaged.
>
> Being a PIO is not some binary yes or no you can do it. It is something that takes considerable experience and training for the big jobs, but can easily be learned and mastered for the small missions. FEMA has multiple levels of PIO, so we should too. We need many more basic PIOs to help out, but we need a few Master Level PIOs just like FEMA has. We need more, not less, Master Rated PAOs that aren't discouraged from the task because of excessive PIO requirements they do not want to be directly involved in.
>
>
>
> Bill Weiler, Maj CAP
>
> Florida Wing Civil Air Patrol
>
>  <tel:913.488.5392> 913.488.5392
>
> FLCAP 218
>
>  <mailto:wweiler at flwg.us> wweiler at flwg.us
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: "DOUGLAS E. JESSMER, Lt Col, CAP CAP/PM" < <mailto:djessmer at cap.gov> djessmer at cap.gov>
>
> Sent: Sunday, August 10, 2014 7:56 PM
>
> To: "CAP Public Affairs Officers" < <mailto:cap-pao at lists.sempervigilans.org> cap-pao at lists.sempervigilans.org>
>
> Subject: Re: [PAO] [Bulk] FW: New CAPP 201 - Public Affairs Officer Specialty Track
>
>
>
> All:
>
> I've been following this discussion with great interest, as it goes to the heart of how we communicate to pretty much every constituency. Fact is, emergency services is one of our three main missions. How can we be effective in telling the CAP story if we don't have some background in what's probably our highest-profile purpose?
>
> I don't believe every public affairs officer should need to be a public information officer. And they don't have to be, but those PAs who don't want the FEMA courses and the PIO qualification can stop with the technician level of the track. Those who want the PIO training but can't get to Emmitsburg can go as far as the senior level. I'm sure Emmitsburg is nice this time of year — it's got to be less muggy than it is here in Florida. And if you want the training and to climb the ladder of the specialty track and lay low on the ops side, that's up to you. CAP is, after all, a volunteer organization.
>
> But every PIO should be a PA. And every public affairs officer should at least have a 101 card and some PIO training. Not to have that is to neglect a very important part of what is CAP. We aren't a pure-play emergency services organization, but people know us for that, at least the ones who know us. (And that's another thing — many would-be "customers" for our ops folks still don't know who we are! We need to market ourselves better in that regard....) We aren't just a cadet-program organization. And public affairs officers are in the best position to explain the three sides of CAP — they're not "the ops side and everyone else," but rather, the emergency services, cadet program and aerospace education missions with which Congress chartered us back in the day (PLs 476 and 557). A good PA needs to be well-versed in all three components.
>
> The most important thing in PIO training for CAP members is to learn how to play well with other agencies. CAP's PIOs won't be the lead on any incident, but we still stand to get our message out, and we must have the discipline of messaging to "stay in our lane" and work as part of a greater system. If Deepwater Horizon didn't teach us that, I don't know what will. We need to be team players, all up and down the line. Squadron PAs play as vital a role in our missions as do wing PIOs and the national staff. 
>
> There's not really much else I can say that hasn't been said. Yes, these are the requirements. If there's widespread issue, I imagine adjustments may be made (that's just me speaking from my experience, not saying anything official by any means). We still need to be realistic while we're stretching the field, after all. But what's most important is that we want our public affairs officers to be the best they can be, to be able to capably, competently and confidently tell our story, and to position CAP favorably in our populaces.
>
>
>
> DOUGLAS E. JESSMER, Lt Col, CAP
>
> National Marketing Officer
>
>
>
> COM:  <tel:%28727%29%20480-9606> (727) 480-9606
>
> Clearwater, Fla.
>
>
>
> CAUTION: This e-mail is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain information that is privileged or otherwise protected from disclosure. Do not disseminate this message without the sender's approval. If you received this message in error, please notify the sender by reply e-mail and delete all copies of this message. 

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