European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 18, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday december 18, 1991 the stars and stripes Page 19military Dod to overhaul officer promotion rules Dot. R lllfr�?Tt/1 iriv Antt. By Chuck Vinch Washington Bureau Washington a the defense department is rewriting its regulations on officer promotions after an in House review As Well As a scathing Senate armed services committee report revealed flaws in the current system a top Pentagon official said. Most of the problems uncovered relate to general officer promotions with the congressional report focusing solely on air Force practices and procedures Pentagon manpower chief Christopher Jehn said in a recent interview. The Senate committee report said the air Force unfairly shut out about 90 percent of its colonels from consideration for promotion by using commanders priority candidate lists secret evaluation data and a a prescreening boards in reviewing the results of the Pentagon a own inquiry As Well As the Senate committee report Jehn said three issues stood out. A one was procedures on what we Call a Adverse information a information that is not included in an officers official service record is handled Quot he said. Another problem had to do with a Lack of safeguards against improper communications among promotion Board members he said. A it was also determined that there has been a Lack of adequate governing regulations and insufficient civilian oversight which is in some respects a criticism of my office a Jehn said. The Pentagon a in House report con Taining a series of recommendations on How officer promotion procedures should be changed has been approved by Deputy Secretary of defense Donald Atwood Jehn said. A among the things that report tells us to do is to rewrite the comprehensive Dod regulation pertaining to officer promo systems a he said. A that is under Way right  the findings of the Senate armed services committee report on Hie air Force promotion system a were not dissimilar to the Pentagon a own conclusions Jehn said. Senate armed services committee members inserted language in the fiscal 1992 defense authorization act that gives the defense department specific guidance on some of the changes Law makers feel should be made in officer promotion procedures. Among them a All communications among Board members must be in writing made available to All Board members and made a part of the boards official record. A officers will be notified of any Adverse or unfavourable information that is being made available to the Board and will have a Chance to add their own comments for the record. A prescreening of candidates for promotion to general or Flag officer rank is prohibited except in specific limited cases. A we have their Legal requirements along with our own conclusions and recommendations a Jehn said a and we arc in the process of rewriting our regulations to reflect All  forces due at Marne land Sites Schwet Zingen Germany a special forces recruiting presentations Are scheduled at four Marne land communities in Early january for soldiers interested in joining the army a elite team. Applicants must take a physical fitness and swimming test after the presentation. The swimming test involves a 50-meter swim in Battle dress uniform and boots. Wives of interested soldiers Are encouraged to attend the presentations. Locations dates and times of the sessions Are Schweinfurt Jan. 6 a Conn Barracks theater. Presentations at 9 . And 1 . For information Call sgt. Gardner at ets 354-6413. Kitzinger Jan. 7 a Larson Barracks building 94. Presentations at 10 . And 1 . For information Call sgt. 1st class Fischel at ets 3552760. A Schattenburg Jan. 8 a Jager Cavern theater. Presentations at 9 . And 1 . For information Call master sgt. Inger at ets 323-8826. Wurzburg Jan. 9 a Leighton Barracks building 15, room 6. Presentations at 8 . And 1 . For information Call sgt. 1st class White at ets 350-7136. Soldiers must bring their most recent physical fitness test score card and copies of their forms 2a and 2-1. If local Contact persons Are not available soldiers May obtain information by calling the special forces recruiting detachment office at ets 379-6430 or 06202-806430.army sets Jan. 14 boards for some Early retirements the army will hold Early retirement boards Jan. 14 to consider certain categories of colonels lieutenant colonels majors captains command sergeants major and sergeants major for involuntary separation. In order to retire voluntarily rather than be considered for involuntary separation soldiers must apply by thursday for Basic Branch officers or by dec. 31 for command sergeants major sergeants major and officers of the judge advocate general s corps and chaplain corps. Most officers and senior cos who do not apply for voluntary retirement and later Are selected for involuntary retirement will be forced to leave the service by sept. 1.army promoting 840 next month the army will have 840 officer promotions in january which is fewer than the monthly average of 1,027. The january promotion forecast authorizes 96 promotions to colonel 165 to lieutenant colonel 236 to major 254 to Captain 23 to cw4 and 66 to cw3. Reconstituted 1st army div to have Boice at the Helm by Effie Bathen in Imburg Bureau the commander of the 1st army div headquartered in Ansbach Germany will accompany his commands Flag next month when it is unfurled at the divisions new Home in bad Kreuz Nach officials have announced. Maj. Gen. William m. Boice will command units now designated 8th inf div Mech in the German states of Rheinland Pfalz and Hessen succeeding maj. Gen. John p. Otjen according a to a spokeswoman for the . Army in Europe. Otjens next Job will be Deputy to the inspector general for inspections training and automation for the office of the Secretary of the army in Washington said Millie Waters. He is to assume that Job no later than March 2. The 1st army div will a a cases its colors in Ansbach on Jan. 16 next year and unease them Jan. 17 bocce at a ceremony in Baum older where an indoor facility can be used in Case of bad weather. The new division which the army Calls a reconstituted a will have its Headquarters in bad Kreuz Nach now Home to 8th inf dives commander. All units currently under 8th inf div will become part of the 1st army div except for the 1st brigade and aviation brigade in Mainz. The Mainz based units impending withdrawal from Europe already has been announced Waters said. Otherwise re flagged units will remain in place. Currently 8th inf dives 2nd brigade and div arty Are in Bauni Holder. The 3rd brigade is in Mannheim and the division support command and Engineer brigade Are in bad Kreuz Nach. Soldiers of the 4th brigade in Hanau and the 1st brigade at Kirch Gons were designated part of the 1st amid div in August and already Wear that Patch. Maj. Keenan Kline a spokesman for the 1st army div said the command would not comment on the Mission of the newly flagged division until after the january ceremony. Boice received the a old Ironsides command in Ansbach in july to a Lead the unit through the draw Down process a according to the army announcement. The division had an average of 17,000 soldiers in peacetime plus 5,000 during the persian Gulf War. Its draw Down meant moving 50 or More families a Day after july most before Christmas. Boice also has had six years experience in Europe with other units. He served As the 3rd army dives chief or staff in Frankfurt from june 1986 to november 1987. From Novom or until August 1989, he was the 1st army div assistant division commander and then the commander from August to october 1989. His other assignments also included chief of staff of the . Central come rear during operations desert storm and desert shield. The 8th inf div much currently headquartered in bad Kreuz Nach will Case its Flag and return it to the United states said Waters. She said Usa eur will not discuss the future direction of a unit withdrawing from Europe she said. Big Grant for military research defended by Small College by John Lancaster the Washington Post Washington a it was one of the More intriguing mysteries of the 1992 defense spending Bill Why did Congress name Marywood College a Small Catholic school in Scranton  As the recipient of a non competitive $10 million Grant for unspecified research of a major importance to the . Military one important clue was the involvement of rep. Joseph m. Mcdade,r-pa., ranking minority member of the House appropriations defense subcommittee who inserted the Marywood Grant during closed door House Senate conference negotiations on the $271 billion spending Bill. Marywood is in Mcdade a congressional District. But the actual purpose of the Marywood Grant remained unclear a until last week. In a Telephone interview Friday sister Mary reap the College president said the $10 million Grant a roughly one third of the schools annual budget a would be used to study substance abuse stress management and family support issues on . Military bases worldwide. A a there a a developing Field of research in this area a said reap who explained that part of the Money would go toward a new a family service Institute dedicated to improving the lives of military families. Reap said a much Quot of the research a will apply to families in  she added a if you re asking me a Are we going to focus on the military a the answer is  a the Marywood Grant was one of several dozen such a a earmarks for universities and other projects included in the defense spending Bill during secret conference negotiations. The legislation passed in late november Over the objections of chairman Sam Nunn d-ga., of the Senate armed services committee who accused the conferees of placing parochial interests ahead of National defense and violating an agreement not to fund projects that had not been authorized by his committee. The practice of earmarking defense funds for specific colleges and universities sometimes known As a academic pork barrelling a also has been criticized by scientists who say it undermines the system of competitive peer review that governs the awarding of Federal research Grants. Those who defend the practice say they Are simply trying to break the monopoly of a few big universities on defense department research