NORFOLK – Army Major General Byron S. Bagby, the 27th Commandant of the Forces Staff College, welcomed a new class of 255 students to the Joint and Combined Warfighting School of the Joint Forces< Staff College. The opening ceremony was held at the college’s MacArthur Auditorium on Monday, 14 January 2008.
These new students will undergo a ten-week course of instruction focused on National Military Strategy, Theater Operational Planning, Contemporary Operating Environment, and Command and Control of Joint Operations under a Joint Force Commander.
MG Bagby says his job as Commandant is to “ensure we are providing the absolute best possible joint professional military education to our Nations’ military, DoD and non-DoD Civilians, and participating International Officers from around the world. We challenge these students academically and equip them with joint competencies required to become successful, contributing joint staff officers."
The JFSC was originally established as the Armed Forces Staff College in 1946. Over the years, its mission has changed with the demands of our Nation’s top military leaders. Today, JFSC educates over 3,500 national security leaders in joint, multinational, and interagency operational-level planning and warfighting to instill a primary commitment to joint, multinational, and interagency teamwork, attitudes, and perspectives.
As part of this change, for the first time in the history of the college, Senior Enlisted personnel will be included as part of the student body. The Nation’s Senior Enlisted’s roles have evolved and so have the educational requirements evolved to meet their professional development. JFSC is proud to be able to meet this need.
Additionally, JFSC invites professionals from various non-DOD agencies, e.g., Department of State, Department of Homeland Security, and United States Agency for International Development to participate in the two-week Joint Interagency Operations Planning Course that is embedded within the JCWS curriculum. This innovative program advances the ongoing collaborative effort between the military and other government agencies. The end result is the development of national security leaders at all levels and from all government agencies who are well versed in operational campaign planning to handle a myriad of complex contingencies around the Globe.