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While visiting Washington, D.C., Ulin and Koreckij also had the opportunity to sit in on the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) meeting that reviewed the candidate designs for the 2012 National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center Commemorative Coin.  This meeting afforded them with valuable insights about the review process for the Foundation’s candidate designs with the CCAC next spring.

The Foundation is currently participating in collaborative efforts on the design of the coins with the U.S. Mint and has provided a number of photographs of the five star generals for their artists to use in the design process.  The initial design process generally takes about six weeks, after which time the Foundation will receive a packet of designs for review.  Based on the Foundation’s recommendations, the designs will then be refined by the artists at the Mint and presented to the CCAC and the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts for their review.

“While much work still remains, we are very excited to have officially kicked off this coin program,” said Koreckij.  “More details on the coin designs and marketing strategies will be forthcoming as the date nears for the coins official release to the public.  Events already in the works include an unveiling ceremony for the final coin designs tentatively planned to be held in October 2012 in Washington D.C. and at Fort Leavenworth.”

“This coin program remains our top priority,” said Foundation CEO Bob Ulin.  “The sale of these commemorative coins in 2013 will generate the funds necessary to complete our capital campaign and position the Foundation to develop and sustain meaningful, long-term programs in support of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.”

Related News Release:  President signs 5-Star Commemorative Coin Act into law

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While appropriated federal funding is adequate for the infrastructure and operating costs needed to maintain the educational baseline, funds that support and expand the Margin of Excellence in CGSC must come from private resources. Philanthropy, the means of obtaining these private resources, is an essential role for the CGSC Foundation. Through its philanthropic efforts such as the 1881 Legacy Society, the CGSC Foundation helps CGSC produce exceptional leaders capable of dealing with the new environmental and operational challenges of a post-9/11 world. The CGSC Foundation is funded through private donations and its board of trustees is staffed with distinguished retired military leaders, business executives, community leaders and others who are focused on providing the Margin of Excellence to the educational programs of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.

As you consider your year-end tax planning or overall estate planning, we hope you will consider making good use of the income tax charitable deduction. Your charitable gifts can significantly reduce your income taxes, while providing meaningful support to the CGSC Foundation and other non-profit organizations.

Visit the Ways to Give page on our site to learn more.

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This report notes the progress we have made in just two years with the Colonel Arthur D. Simons Center for the Study of Interagency Cooperation. At this writing, the Simons Center, a program of the CGSC Foundation, has made remarkable progress.

The Simons Center was created to support scholarship within the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and to foster interagency cooperation. Former commandant Lt. Gen.William B. Caldwell, IV, started an exchange program with several federal departments and agencies to stimulate discussion and education within the federal government. When Mr. Ross Perot asked how he could help the College, the Foundation presented him with a proposal to establish a center for the study of interagency cooperation. Perot provided startup funding and asked that the center be named after Colonel Arthur D. “Bull” Simons, leader of the 1970 Son Tay Raid into North Vietnam and the person who organized and led the operation to rescue two of Mr. Perot’s employees the Iranian government had taken hostage in 1979.

It is fitting that this center was named after Bull Simons, a decisive, mission-focused, no-nonsense leader. In just two years the Simons Center has become the focal point for interagency cooperation at the operational and tactical levels of effort. In this report, Ted Strickler, the executive director of the center notes the extraordinary progress made in just two years. Noteworthy is recognition by members of Congress that the Simons Center is the “go to” organization for knowledge about interagency cooperation.

The Simons Center has become an agent of influence in support of interagency cooperation at a critical time in American history. As budgets are cut across the government, departments and agencies must work together more efficiently and effectively to do the people’s work. As we learned in the military services, working together as a joint force enables each service to bring its unique skills, knowledge and ability to the fight in a way that magnifies results. So too, the departments and agencies of the U.S. government must “task organize” in support of domestic emergencies and overseas contingencies because working together can save money, improve collaboration and produce better results.

The CGSC Foundation’s Simons Center has become a thought leader in interagency cooperation attracting scholars from across the nation to analyze and discuss interagency cooperation issues.  This progress report at the end of the Center’s second year of operations is a testament to that status.

All Simons Center progress reports are available on the Simons Center website.

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A reception followed the ceremony.  Photos and more information are available on the Ethics Symposium website.

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• From the Chairman
• CEO’s Corner
• CGSC Hall of Famer defends family from attack in Iowa
• 5-Star Generals Commemorative Coin Update
• Gen. Shelton receives 2011 Distinguished Leadership Award
• Simons Center Report
• Readers Survey
• Foundation golf tournament features parachute jump by chairman
• CGSC Foundation now a part of national CFC Campaign
• Iron Major CrossFit
• The 15th Infantry in China
• National Security Roundtable focuses on Mexico
• In Memoriam
• In Print
• Partner Spotlight- Metro Productions

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I have just been informed this afternoon of the passing of David Beaham, President of Faultless Starch Bon Ami, Kansas City, an original founding trustee of the CGSC Foundation and a great friend of CGSC. David passed this morning from a heart attack.

David was a founding trustee who pledged his support at the very beginning of the creation of the Foundation in 2006. He believed passionately about CGSC and the role it plays in the development of our military leaders. He was a great supporter of the International Military Student Division of the College and a fierce advocate of the importance of CGSC. David was also a major supporter of the Business Executives of National Security (BENS) nationally and in Kansas City.

We shall miss David, his infectious smile, good nature and enduring devotion to the military. Our heart goes out to his wife and children.

We shall post details of the memorial on the CGSC Foundation website when they become available.– Update– Memorial Services for David are being conducted Friday, Oct. 14, at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, 6401 Wornall Terrace, Kansas City, Mo.  David’s obituary is available here.

Very Respectfully,

Bob

Robert R. Ulin
Colonel, US Army Retired
CEO, CGSC Foundation, Inc.

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The Ranger Group, LLC, and Armed Forces Bank sponsored the jump.  The Ranger Group President/CEO Mark “Ranger” Jones is the vice president for development for the CGSC Foundation.  Ranger has logged more than 4,000 parachute jumps in his former military career and employs a parachute demonstration team as part of his company’s outreach program.  The Ranger Group Parachute Team Captain, Mike Elliot, a former U.S. Army Special Forces Soldier, was Arter’s lead in the tandem jump.  Other members of the Ranger Group team also jumped with Elliot and Arter.

Video and Photos:

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Two years ago Kansas State University and the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC) expanded their long-standing educational partnership as they embarked on a new mission in support of vital national homeland security interests. Recognizing the crucial need for increased access to graduate programs addressing homeland security and emergency management issues, K-State and CGSC have been collaborating to develop a Homeland Security graduate certificate program aligned to the needs of regional homeland security professionals.

To support this project, Kansas Senator Pat Roberts led the effort to secure a non-competitive, Congressionally- directed grant in the amount of $250,000 for the Command and General Staff College Foundation, Inc., for curriculum and course development related to this Homeland Security (HLS) education program.

During the two-day symposium conducted in March 2011, attendees were updated on the program development progress since the initial Homeland Security Educational Needs Analysis Workshop held in 2008. Attendees saw how their input in 2008 has been incorporated into a comprehensive program concept that will serve as a model program for educating, training, and maintaining the nation’s homeland security professionals.    Attendees also participated in symposium sessions focusing on diverse areas of homeland security. Through these sessions, attendees had the opportunity to share their unique professional experiences and insights to assist in finalizing the curriculum and to encourage dialogue among regional homeland security professionals about critical topics.
The Homeland Security Symposium at Fort Leavenworth was co-sponsored and hosted by the Command and General Staff College Foundation, Inc., and Kansas State University in support of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC). This report summarizes the activities and presentations during the symposium.

Right Click/Save Target As on the image to download the full pdf

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From left to right, Command Sgt. Maj. Marvin Hill, Bob Ulin, Gen. David Petraeus, Montel Williams and Mark “Ranger” Jones, eat dinner in Gen. Petraeus’ office in ISAF Headquarters, Kabul, Afghanistan.  Courtesy photo

Left to right, Bob Ulin, CGSC Foundation CEO, Montel Williams, popular television personality, Command Sgt. Maj. Marvin Hill, ISAF CSM, and Mark “Ranger” Jones, CGSC Foundation VP for Development, stand geared up before boarding a Blackhawk to conduct troop visits with Hill.  Courtesy photo

Back in 2006 when we established the Foundation one of our earliest supporters was then Lt. Gen. David Petraeus the Commandant of the College. He understood how important a supporting foundation would be to the College. General Petraeus is a 1983 graduate of CGSC and the Marshall Award recipient, the top graduate in his class. Following General Petraeus as commandant was Lt. Gen. Bill Caldwell, another great supporter of the Foundation. Both are currently serving in Afghanistan— Gen. Petraeus is the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Commander while Lt. Gen. Caldwell commands the NATO Transition Mission in Afghanistan (NTM-A).

When I had an opportunity to visit Afghanistan in February, I jumped at the chance to pay my respects to these two magnificent leader warriors who are serving their country in harm’s way. Our Vice President for Development, Mark “Ranger” Jones made it possible for me to go along with him and Montel Williams, a former enlisted Marine, Naval Academy graduate, Naval officer, and actor. The mission was to document the service of Command Sgt. Maj. Marvin Hill, General Petraeus’ top enlisted Soldier in Afghanistan. Montel is developing a profile of Command Sgt. Maj. Hill for Black History Month.

We arrived in Kabul at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday morning, Feb. 19, and were met by a personal security detail that provided armored vests and helmets for the drive to ISAF headquarters. We checked into the rather austere guest quarters, a room about 8 x 20 feet complete with shower, toilet, bed desk and chair. At 10:30 a.m. we suited up in body armor, boarded a Blackhawk helicopter with Hill as our escort and flew to Bagram Air Force Base, a very large logistics base about 30 minutes north of Kabul. We spent about three hours on the ground having lunch with troops, visiting a hospital run by the Air Force and meeting a few patients. We also visited the headquarters of the 101st Airborne Division. Montel posed for photographs at every turn. The troops were delighted to have visitors and share their stories.

On Sunday, we were slated to visit a Forward Operating Base but the weather between Kabul and the FOB prevented us from making the trip. Instead we walked around ISAF HQ and then drove to Camp Eggers in the green zone to visit Lt. Gen. Caldwell’s headquarters. Unfortunately, General Caldwell departed Kabul for Brussels, just before we arrived, where he was meeting with NATO officials. Command Sgt. Maj. Ralph Beam, Caldwell’s CSM, was our host. That afternoon, back at ISAF headquarters we watched as Gen. Petraeus re-enlisted two Sailors from his personal security detail and presented awards to departing Sailors. That evening we dined with Gen. Petraeus in his office inside ISAF headquarters.

Monday, we flew in a C-12, twin-engine turbo prop aircraft, to Kandahar in the south, a 90-minute flight over some fairly rugged mountains. We met with some support troops over lunch, visited the Combat Aviation Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division and then toured a beautifully equipped hospital run by the Navy.

Tuesday, our last day, we suited up in body armor for a road trip to the NATO Training area. We were transported in a Mine Resistant Ambush Protested (MRAP) three-vehicle convoy through Kabul to the north of town just beyond the King and Queens’ palaces previously destroyed by the Soviets in the late 1970s. We observed some training, ate lunch with the troops—many from other allied nations including Germany, Macedonia, Australia, the U.K., among others. After lunch we visited the Counterinsurgency Center and were briefed by an Australian warrant officer. We then departed by convoy to Kabul International Airport where we departed for home.

It was a tremendous experience for me. I realized while flying to Kandahar that it had been 44 years since I entered combat in Vietnam as a 24-year-old second lieutenant. To have the opportunity to return to an active combat zone to meet with Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Airmen was very fulfilling. I was struck by how many female troops there are in country—they were everywhere, armed to the teeth, just like the guys. My, how times have changed.

A big thank you to Ranger Jones for making this trip possible, to General Petraeus for his hospitality and support, to Command Sgt. Maj. Hill for allowing us to join him on his battlefield rotation to visit the troops, to Command Sgt. Maj. Beam for the exciting ride around town, and to Montel for sharing his time to visit our service members, pose for photos and bring a smile to the faces of those who serve us so well.

And finally, another thank you to the Kauffman Foundation for their support in making this trip happen.

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