Joint Base Charleston, S.C.
Vol. 7, No. 3
Patriot Team Charleston – One Family, One Mission, One Fight!
February 5, 2016
U.S. Air Force photo / Airman 1st Class Thomas T. Charlton
Joint Base Charleston and Palmetto Scholars Academy leaders – past and present – participated in the ribbon cutting event opening a new school building at Hunley Park on JB Charleston, S.C., on Jan 23, 2016. The new facility has been a four-year project headed by Stacey Lindbergh, PSA chairman of the board, which began with discussions with former JB Charleston commander Col. Richard McComb. See related story on Page 4.
Palmetto Scholars Academy opens new facility on JB Charleston By Airman 1st Class Thomas Charlton Joint Base Charleston Public Affairs
Palmetto Scholars Academy, an award-winning charter school for gifted and talented children, held a ribbon cutting ceremony Jan. 23, 2016, celebrating the opening of a new school building in Hunley Park on Joint Base Charleston, S.C. The ceremony marked the culmination of a four-year effort, across various sectors of government, to gain the permissions and funding needed to build on Hunley Park. "Today's ribbon cutting is important to the military families that serve here," said U.S. Air Force Col. Robert K. Lyman, Joint Base Charleston commander, during his remarks at the ribbon cutting. "It represents more than four years of partnership." When the charter school opened in 2010, PSA was located in a small daycare center on the Naval Weapons Station. Because there was little funding, the school came close to closing several times. "We had a very tough first year, financially," Stacey Lindbergh, PSA chairman of the board, said. "There were several times I thought we were going to have to lock up permanently. If it hadn't been for my mother, a 70-year-old Air Force widow, putting her own house up for sale, I don't think we would have made it." Funding was a constant problem for the PSA faculty and board. "I had gone to several people to try and help us," Lindbergh
said, "but I was getting nowhere." Running out of options, Lindberg thought of approaching the JB Charleston commander, Col. Robert McComb. "Going to Col. McComb was a long shot. I didn't know if it was going to work, but after talking to him, I knew we were going to be successful," Lindbergh said. McComb worked with PSA to establish the new location of the school right across the street from the Air Base. Jeffrey Garrett, 628th Civil Engineer Squadron installation management flight chief, has been working on this project since it started four years ago. "When Col. McComb had found out about this opportunity, he was excited about it from the start," Garrett said. "It was a long process, but in the end, we were able to come to the agreement on the amount of land as well as the land lease itself." On May 1, 2015, PSA held its ground breaking ceremony at Hunley Park, marking the beginning of construction for PSA's new school. The new building took more than eight months to complete and increased the school's space by 30,000 square feet. "If it weren't for Col. McComb," Lindbergh said, "I don't think we would have ever found a new home." Noel Tufts, a ninth grader and a second year student at PSA, is very optimistic about the new facilities. "I'm excited about the new building," Tufts said. "Not only are we getting actual labs and a gym but we're actually getting real classrooms and bathrooms. Everyone is helping pack and move everything from the old building to the new one."
To get the approval for the building, Lindbergh worked with the South Carolina Legislature to introduce and pass the S.C. Military Charter Law, which allows charter schools to designate a portion of the slots in their student body to children of active duty military personnel assigned to military installations that provide land or facilities. "We are saving about 20 percent of our slots for active duty military personnel's children," Lindbergh said. "Being an old military brat myself, I know how important it is for military kids to get a good education as well as have a good environment in which to learn." As the JB Charleston commander, Lyman also expressed his enthusiasm for the new opportunity. "With no degree of overstatement, I believe this school will literally transform the experience of military families who serve here," he said. "It marks a new educational opportunity, right in our back yard." Officially opening its halls on Jan. 29, the new home for PSA provides a more spacious and modern learning center for the children. The new facility allows the students to do science projects in actual science classrooms and experience physical education in a real gym, Tufts said. Additionally, the added space in the school enables more South Carolina gifted and talented student to attend PSA. "The charter school, being an A-rated school, will produce a vital quality educational option for military families and the surrounding community," Garrett said.
MCPO becomes Chief Warrant Officer By Airman 1st Class Thomas Charlton Joint Base Charleston Public Affairs
INSIDE
Former Navy Master Chief Petty Officer Jason Roach was promoted to Chief Warrant Officer 3 at the Red Bank Club on Joint Base Charleston - Naval Weapons Station, S.C., on January 29, 2016. As a new Chief Warrant Officer 3, Roach is now a fire control officer aboard the USS Eisenhower, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. "I wanted to get commissioned because I wanted to expand my horizons and experience another side of the Navy," said Roach. A Chief Warrant Officer is a subject matter expert in a specific occupational field whose knowledge level is beyond what's expected of a senior enlisted member. Applications are limited to Chief Petty Officer through a Master Chief Petty Officer. However, 1st Class Petty Officers who are eligible to be promoted to Chief Petty Officer also may apply. Capt. Charles Phillip, commanding officer of the Navy Munitions Command Atlantic unit Charleston and Roach's former commander, believes the Chief Warrant Officer program is an important option the Navy has to offer.
Civil Air Patrol enters its 75th year
The ‘CAP’
Page 3
"The Navy Chief Warrant Officer program is an essential commissioning source of the Navy officer corps which provides an unprecedented level of experience and expertise," said Phillip. Roach would have accepted a full commission but there were restrictions preventing him from doing so. "I would've accepted a full commission as a normal officer," Roach said, "but I was past the time limit in my career to commission, so I decided to become a Chief Warrant Officer." Roach still has goals and ambitions he wants to achieve. "I want to qualify as a command duty officer and hopefully make Chief Warrant Officer 5. I would also love to be the officer in charge of the Naval Munitions Command detachment in Crete, Greece," said Roach. While it took a lot of hard work and dedication to become a Master Chief Petty Officer and a Chief Warrant Officer, Roach is able to share his advice on how to succeed. "You want to find out who the best person in your unit is and mold yourself after them and from there you can do anything you want," said Roach. Though Roach is the one who has become a Chief Warrant Officer, he did not do it alone and knows he couldn't have done it without help. "If it weren't for my family, friends and the people I've
Team Charleston members honored
AWARDS
Pages 4 & 5
Military Youth of the Year shares experiences
YOUTH CLUB
Page 6
Former MCPO Jason Roach allows his wife, Judy, and his daughter, Samantha Tharas, to pin on his new rank of CWO3 during his commissioning ceremony at the Red Bank Club on Joint Base Charleston, S.C., on Jan. 29, 2016. A CWO is a subject matter expert in a specific occupational field whose knowledge level is beyond what’s expected of senior enlisted members in the same field.
served with who pushed me to where I am today," Roach said, "I wouldn't have been able to make it this far." See Chief Warrant Officer, Page 2
WEEKEND WEATHER UPDATE for Joint Base Charleston, SC Partly Cloudy
Mostly Sunny
Friday, Feb. 5
(0% precip)
High 55º Low 35º
Saturday, Feb. 6
(0% precip)
High 54º Low 35º
Extended Forecast
Rain Sunday, Feb. 7
(70% precip)
High 52º Low 35º
Mon. - Feb. 8 61°/35° - PM Showers (40%) Tue. - Feb. 9 52°/30° - Partly Cloudy (0%) Wed. - Feb. 10 47°/27° - Sunny (10%) Thur. - Feb. 11 52°/34° - Sunny (0%) Fri. - Feb. 12 60°/38° - Sunny (0%)
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