Strategic Education Bridges the Gap Faster If Offered Early to Company Grade Officers Interview with Captain Carlos “Mike” Sanford, USA
SSFP Inaugural Class Photo
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he Institute for Defense and Business (IDB) is a nonprofit research and education institute formed in 1997 by the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill and the state of North Carolina. The IDB fosters shoulder-to-shoulder partnerships among the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, other government agencies, and the private sector to achieve excellence and innovation through research and education. The most recent addition to the institute’s programs is the UNC-IDB Strategic Studies Fellows Program (SSFP). Created at the request of the US Army and offering graduate-level credit in Strategic Studies, this five-week course teaches high-potential senior captains to look at national security issues from a more strategic level. Recently the DTJ caught up with Captain Carlos Sanford who shared his experience as a graduate of the inaugural class:
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Defense Transportation Journal
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CPT Sanford briefing about coalition and joint training for the group project.
How would you characterize your experience? It was an incredibly dynamic experience and one that has significantly changed the way I think about things. As a Logistics Officer, I now have a better understanding of how our Army operates from the highest
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levels. For the past 11 years our Army has been at war and an argument can be made that throughout that time there has been a significant decrease in educational opportunities, as requirements demanded Company grade officers to serve “downrange”. Times are changing—company grade officers have been entrusted to take on more responsibility during these times. That being said, a lot of junior officers have a wealth of experience and it should be leveraged in the institutional environment. What would you say is the most important thing you learned from the program? I learned that as a strategic thinker you must think objectively. Thinking this way can often times stimulate dialogue while formulating new and innovative ideas. As the Army experiences difficult times through budget cuts and constrained resources, we
