WASHINGTON SURVEYOR THE
Mar. 21, 2017
By MCSN Kristen Yarber
PROUDTOBEAN
AMERICAN SAILORS CAN EARN THEIR CITIZENSHIP BY SERVING
By MC3 Carter Denton
DIVISIONIN
THESPOTLIGHT GW FOCUSES IN ON EXCELLENCE
By MC3 Joshua DuFrance
goingt.a.d. GW Sailor ADJUSTS TO NEW ROLE
On the cover: (Sept. 4, 2016) Sailors perform afternoon colors aboard USS George Washington (CVN 73). (Photo by MC3Jonathan Price)
PHOTO of the DAY
HM2 Rashad Beamon,left, HM2 James Tonski conduct cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training. (Photo by MC3 Anna Van Nuys)
The Washington Surveyor Commanding Officer
Executive Officer
Command Master Chief
CAPT Timothy Kuehhas
CDR Colin Day
CMDCM James Tocorzic
Public Affairs Officer
Deputy PAO
Media DLCPO
Media LPO
LCDR Gregory L. Flores
LTJG Andrew Bertucci
MCC Mary Popejoy
MC1 Alan Gragg
Staff
Editors MC2 Kris R. Lindstrom MC3 Kashif Basharat
MC2 Alora Blosch MC2 Jessica Gomez MC2 Bryan Mai MC2 Jennifer O’Rourke MC2 Jules Stobaugh
MC3 Wyatt Anthony MC3 Devin Bowser MC3 Carter Denton MC3 Joshua DuFrane MC3 Jacob Goff
MC3 Shayla Hamilton MC3 Brian Sipe MC3 Anna Van Nuys MC3 Michael E. Wiese MCSN Jamin Gordon
MCSN Alan Lewis MCSN Oscar Moreno MCSN Kristen Yarber MCSA Julie Vujevich
The Washington Surveyor is an authorized publication for Sailors serving aboard USS George Washington (CVN 73). Contents herein are not the visions of, or endorsed by the U.S. government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Navy or the Commanding Officer of USS George Washington. All news releases, photos or information for publication in The Washington Surveyor must be submitted to the Public Affairs Officer (7726).
*For comments and concerns regarding The Washington Surveyor, email the editor at kashif.basharat@cvn73.navy.mil*
DIVISIONINTHE
SPOTLIGHT gw focuses in on excellence By MC3 Carter Denton
S
ailors aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) are taking part in the Division in the Spotlight (DITS) program to sustain operational readiness and excellence throughout all divisions. The DITS program takes a comprehensive look at George Washington to ensure material, manpower and administrative readiness are maintained at all levels. “The purpose of DITS is to keep all the departments up to speed on what is required of them,” said Aviation Electronics Technician 2nd Class Alyssa Toomey, who is assigned to George Washington’s training department. DITS includes a review of all personnel on board, making sure every crew-
member is trained and mission-ready. “DITS is important because if you don’t keep track of training then you have an undertrained ship,” said Toomey. “Even though we’re in a phase where we won’t be going out to sea, we have to keep up our training requirements because anyone could be asked to go underway on another ship, and they would have to be prepared to go.” Each department will be reviewed individually to identify any issues they may have. “DITS is just a way to improve the ship as a whole and fix the small issues that are usually overlooked,” said Damage Contolman 2nd Class Shana Simpkins. “It lets divisions know the issues they need to fix and it’s just a
Sailors from training department pose for a photo.
way to improve the department as a whole so that the whole ship can shine.” Feedback during the DITS process is intended to be constructive and in the purpose of improving the ship’s operational readiness. “Preparing for DITS is just being ready to accept all types of feedback and keeping a positive attitude,” said Simpkins. “It’s important to be proactive to set the ship up for success in its next 25 years.” At the conclusion of DITS all departments will report discrepancies and corrective actions to the ship’s executive officer. The effectiveness of the corrective actions from this DITS process will be reported during the next regularly scheduled DITS inspection.
“I love my rate. It’s easily the best rate in the Navy, in my opinion.” - ACAN Brian Springer
GOINGT.A.D. GW SAILOR ADJUSTS TO NEW ROLE By MC3 Joshua DuFrance
F
or many Sailors aboard aircraft carrier USS George Washington, being sent to a temporary assigned duty (TAD) is just part of the cycle of life in the Navy; regardless if a Sailor has a rate or not, almost every person will, at some point in their career, experience a TAD of some sort. For Air Traffic Controller Airman Brian Springer, this transition in his career began several months ago, and he has since adjusted to the new lifestyle. Springer joined the Navy on April 1, 2015, not really knowing what he wanted to do after graduating high school. The Navy offered him the chance to have a guaranteed job right out of school and ensured even if he didn’t stay in the Navy, that he would have his college paid for after his contract was finished. “I didn’t want to go to college right away because I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do,” said Springer. “I figured the Navy would be a safe bet. While I am in the Navy I can figure out what I want to do with my life, rather than wasting money in college; and once I figure out what I want I can go to college after this.” His whole life, Springer always held a fond appreciation for aviation. Going into the military, he knew he wanted to work with aircraft in some way or another, and jumped at the opportunity to pick the air traffic controller (AC) rate when it was offered to him. “I love my rate,” said Springer. “It’s easily the best rate in the Navy, in my opinion. I enjoy doing my job. I think it is really cool being able to talk to pilots and control when and where they need to go. There is something really
special about being able to guide a pilot down on their final approach and watching them catch the trap safely.” A few months after reporting to George Washington, Springer was sent TAD to security to fulfill his department’s requirements. “Being sent to security isn’t that bad,” said Springer. “My favorite thing about this division is the 3-2-2-3 schedule.” The schedule for security has their division working three days on-shift, two days off work, two days on-shift and the following three days off. This allows Sailors in security to have 15 days out of every month off of work. “While some days it’s a bummer because we work three really long days in a row, we also get three day breaks pretty often, which is awesome. The hours are long, but we have a set schedule which makes the whole situation worth it.” Every naval base has security check points at the entrance(s) of the command, but that doesn’t mean that every ship docked at the piers won’t have their own security forces as well. “When people come on base, they can bring civilians, friends and family with them,” said Master-At-Arms 2nd Class Joshua Colbert. “While these people get on base, if the person they came with becomes busy, they can separate. We have security at the pier to ensure that the right people are allowed access to the pier and the ship.” Manning the pier and command with security requires a manpower that the fleet cannot provide to every ship, so the security division pulls from other departments to meet their requirements.
“People sent TAD to security are 100 percent the backbone of the security force,” said Colbert. “If it wasn’t for the people sent TAD to our department, and if they weren’t doing their jobs correctly, our department would fall apart.” While transitioning from their parent division to security, Sailors go through Security Reaction Force Basicto learn the fundamentals of security; from tactical operations, applying handcuffs to dispatch and radio operations. After completing their training, Sailors then return to the command to receive hands-on training. “We are the last line of defense,” said Springer. “Even though the base has a security check point, there is always the possibility that someone who shouldn’t can get through. That is why we have security on the pier and at the entrance of the ship; making sure that everyone is safe is our primary concern.” While TAD to security, Springer has been ahead of his qualifications, setting an example of how Sailors should approach a TAD situation. “My biggest piece of advice for someone coming TAD to security is to make sure you get your qualifications done early; mainly your patrolman qualification. That is the big one that security wants you to have. If you can get that qualification relatively fast, you’ll be setting yourself up for success.” There are multiple departments a Sailor may get sent to for TAD. Every department offers a multitude of opportunities for Sailors to grow professionally while away from their parent division, while giving a new perspective on how other divisions operate day-to-day.
(April 1, 2016)- Chief petty officers perform morning colors. (Photo by MC3 Clemente Lynch)
PROUDTOBEANAMERICAN SAILORS CAN EARN THEIR CITIZENSHIP BY SERVING By MCSN Kristen Yarber
“I
couldn’t afford to become an American,” said Chief Hospital Corpsman Charlena Brown. “As a civilian, each piece of paper costs hundreds of dollars,” she said. The road to becoming an American was a long and pricey ordeal, even with the possibility of joining the military. Brown was originally a Canadian native who started the process of becoming an American before joining the U.S. Navy. She start-
ed by getting her work permit, eventually got a green card and joined the Navy nine days later. While serving aboard the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67), Brown said Sailors seeking citizenship would sometimes find themselves with limited opportunities if they did not complete the naturalization in a timely manner. Today, members of the U.S. military from foreign countries can become American citizens for
free. However, the naturalization process was not always this convenient for service members. Roughly a year after the events of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush issued an executive order that expedited the citizenship process for military members. The expedited citizenship process waived certain obstacles such as the five-year continuous residence requirement needed for naturalization. It also waived the $640 U.S. Citizenship
“I think everybody works hard and wants to do their best for their country but sometimes you get a little extra pride from those who are naturalized,” -LT. Jennifer Schwartau
and Immigration Services (USCIS) fee, which made the process quicker and easier for service members. “For military members, the process is a little bit faster,” said Lt. Jennifer Schwartau, George Washington’s deputy command judge advocate. “You just have to have served for one year.” Service members seeking citizenship first have to fill out an N-400 Form, which is available on the state department’s website, www.uscis. gov. N-400 forms serve as background checks where things such as former addresses and names of family members are listed. A certification of military service must be completed as well. Those pursuing citizenship will also have to take a naturalization test, which consists of questions about their application and background. Schwartau said those getting
their citizenship can start the application process before they have served for a year. However, they will not be eligible for citizenship until they fulfill a year of service. “Don’t be afraid to file the paperwork,” said Brown. “It’s really worth it.” After the announcement was made that citizenship was necessary to serve aboard certain platforms in the Navy, Brown took advantage of the expedited process and became an American citizen. “I could actually say I was like everyone else,” said Brown. “Usually, I fight against being like everyone else. But for once, I truly wanted to be like everyone else.” Schwartau said having people from other countries join the military and gain citizenship benefits the Navy because it provides diversity in many
ways. People from various cultures and backgrounds present different points of view and skill sets in their job fields. The expedited naturalization process attracts people who may have more qualifications than the standard person born in the United States. “I think everybody works hard and wants to do their best for their country, but sometimes you get a little extra pride from those who are naturalized,” Schwartau said. According to USCIS, more than 100,000 members of the United States military have been naturalized since September 2002. “The flag that a lot of my friends have died for I’m a part of now,” said Brown. “I’m truly a part of it. I own a piece of that.” For more information on naturalization, visit www.uscis.gov.
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