I'm not posting this to complain or rant. I'm just trying to understand CAP policies/procedures to avoid future frustrations.
I've been a SM in CAP less than a year and I've been working toward a couple of different specialty tracks, one of which was Moral Leadership Officer (MLO). I worked toward my MLO tech rating for many months. I wrote essays, studied the suggested readings, and gave a few character development instructions to our cadets. I finally finished up 99% of my requirements, and we (the CC and I) turned in my paperwork to the wing chaplain for approval. Only at that point did I learn that I needed to fill out a wing MLO application, and meet certain requirements above and beyond what was in the Tech rating pamphlet. One of the requirements was that the MLO candidate hold a "leadership position" in his or her church for at least two years.
Again, not complaining, but had I known this requirement I would not have wasted hours and hours of my time working toward a tech rating that I don't qualify for (or won't qualify for a at least another two years).
My questions are:
Is it common for wings to add additional requirements above and beyond listed specialty rating requirements?
Is this practice referenced or permitted in any of the regulations? (I searched but didn't find it)
The simple answer is no, not usually. There are only a handful of specialty tracks that are managed at the wing level (e.g. Chaplain, Legal, Command). Most specialty tracks are managed and approved at the unit level, especially for Technician rating. There are a few, Safety comes to mind, that will have as a requirement that a Senior or Master rated officer certify certain tasks of completion of the rating. These are usually spelled out in their particular pamphlet.
If individual wings want to add requirements to a specialty track, I assume they would have to do so through a Supplement, Operating Instruction or similar publication. Check your wing's website for those. But in general, you shouldn't have many problems seeking specialty track ratings. But to be safe, it wouldn't hurt to verify requirements before attempting to complete a rating. If there's no such rated officer in your squadron, check with your group or wing.
Actually, MLO is no longer a specialty track. It's now CDI - Character Development Instructor. Part of the reason was to get away from the religious tone.
Quote from: arajca on June 06, 2013, 07:12:11 PM
Actually, MLO is no longer a specialty track. It's now CDI - Character Development Instructor. Part of the reason was to get away from the religious tone.
Correct, but he probably enrolled in the MLO track before it was replaced. That being said, the OP should check the requirements for the CDI track; they may be similar. That would be a way to take advantage of the work done and still get a rating. We had similar issues when the Flight Operations track was eliminated in favor of the single Operations track.
Quote from: SAREXinNY on June 06, 2013, 06:08:38 PM
Only at that point did I learn that I needed to fill out a wing MLO application, and meet certain requirements above and beyond what was in the Tech rating pamphlet. One of the requirements was that the MLO candidate hold a "leadership position" in his or her church for at least two years.
Again, not complaining, but had I known this requirement I would not have wasted hours and hours of my time working toward a tech rating that I don't qualify for (or won't qualify for a at least another two years).
This is no longer required of CDI (formerly MLO) applicants. The new requirement is a letter of recommendation from a reputable member of the community. You're also required to have at least 60 hours of post-secondary education.
Thank you all very much for the feedback and help. I will certainly look into the various suggestions listed above!
I'm confused though. I've heard of CDI and MLO being used interchangeably. I've heard CDI has replaced MLO, but CAP Pamphlet 225 (Moral Leadership Officer) was last updated back in 2001 and is still the publication listed on website:
http://www.capmembers.com/forms_publications__regulations/pamphlets-1702/ (http://www.capmembers.com/forms_publications__regulations/pamphlets-1702/)
So is there a separate CDI pamphlet somewhere?
The last I heard, it's on its way. Others may know more.
Quote from: SAREXinNY on June 07, 2013, 03:51:47 AM
Thank you all very much for the feedback and help. I will certainly look into the various suggestions listed above!
I'm confused though. I've heard of CDI and MLO being used interchangeably. I've heard CDI has replaced MLO, but CAP Pamphlet 225 (Moral Leadership Officer) was last updated back in 2001 and is still the publication listed on website:
http://www.capmembers.com/forms_publications__regulations/pamphlets-1702/ (http://www.capmembers.com/forms_publications__regulations/pamphlets-1702/)
So is there a separate CDI pamphlet somewhere?
As SarDragon said, the CDI pamphlet is on the way. Until then, use the old MLO pamphlet for progression once you've been appointed, but the actual appointment is handled under the "new" rules that have already been published in CAPR 265-1. The following Knowledgebase article covers this:
http://capnhq.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1517/kw/character20development/session/L3RpbWUvMTM3MDYxNTY4Ny9zaWQvNF9TeU04c2w%3D (http://capnhq.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1517/kw/character20development/session/L3RpbWUvMTM3MDYxNTY4Ny9zaWQvNF9TeU04c2w%3D)
It's an interesting phenomenon in CAP (though I doubt it's unique to us as an organization).
We regularly present that we are actively seeking people to help in specific areas. especially the ones that are hard to get members interested
in anyway (either because of actual requirements, or the basic nature of the duty), and then when people do the work, even if they were
pointed in the right direction and missed something, we just turn them on their heels with "no soup for you".
It's no wonder most wings are seen as a "culture of no".