Army University Learning Symposium 2022
Dr. Keith R. Beurskens
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The 2022 Army University Learning Symposium was held 19–21 July 2022. This year’s theme was “Modernizing Military Learning.” The symposium was executed as a blended venue with an invitation-only, face-to-face session conducted on Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and an open registration virtual session conducted online. The biennial Army University Learning Symposium was established to exchange ideas and promulgate cutting-edge learning sciences between military and civilian academia. Over 50 organizations attended the symposium to include all U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command schools and centers. There were over 1,000 professionals who participated— more than 950 virtual participants and over 80 in-person participants. This year’s focus areas included four major efforts: Army People First, Army Modernization, Talent Management, and new guidance for Outcomes-Based Military Education. Guest speakers included the following:
- Dr. Lyle J. Hogue, director, Strategy, Plans, and Operations Office, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Manpower and Reserve Affairs), discussed where we were, where we are now, and where we are going with the Army People Strategy and the supporting Civilian and Military Implementation Plans.
- Dr. Douglas M. Matty, director, Army Artificial Intelligence Integration Center, and Maj. Jason Zuniga, chief operations officer, Army Software Factory, discussed modernization and the role of artificial intelligence, and the mission of the Army Software Factory.
- Brig. Gen. Brett Funck, director of the Army Talent Management Task Force, discussed the way ahead for talent management and provided an overview of the Command Assessment Programs.
- Dr. Jack D. Kem, dean of academics and professor of the Command and General Staff College (CGSC), and chief academic officer, Army University, introduced the new Outcomes-Based Military Education guidance and the progress the CGSC has made to date in adopting the new approach.
The two articles that follow were the basis for presentations during the symposium. “Leader Presence and Its Impact on Organizational Climate” by Janetta Harris and Mounir Bouchareb, from the Center for the Army Profession and Leadership, highlights the importance of leader presence in the Army profession in two parts. First, the authors explain what leader presence is and why it matters. Then, the authors examine 10 factors that affect organizational climate and how leader presence is integral to each of those factors.
A leader’s presence influences perceptions and engagement in a unit and is a crucial contribution to organizational climate. “Modernizing the U.S. Army’s Captains Career Course” by Maj. Elvin J. Fortuna of the Vice Provost of Academic Affairs, Army University, describes the most recent redesign of the course that increases the use of learning technologies and moves it closer to the future learning ecosystem concept. The 2023 course changes also set the stage for future modernization efforts that will expand upon the technological infrastructure, design, and policy dimensions of the course.
The next Army University Learning Symposium will be held in July 2024.
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