Fall 2011
Overview –
Since this is the first quarter report to be submitted by the CAC, it was thought to be prudent to give an explanation of CAC’s purpose. The Rocky Mountain Region (RMR) Cadet Advisory Council (CAC) is devoted to serving the region commander (R/CC) and Region Director of Cadet Programs (R/DCP). While serving the R/CC and R/DCP, the RMR CAC is responsible for meeting and discussing cadet programs operations in the region and helping to improve cadet programs through suggesting change in policy for the region. The RMR CAC includes cadet members from Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado wings. These members communicate electronically and meet via teleconference once a month.
Goals:
The CAC has four primary goals that it is working to complete during this term. These goals are:
- Strengthening CACs
- Region Cadet Leadership School (RCLS) Curriculum Standardization
- Region Cadet Activities – Emergency Services Competition
- Creation of a Cadet Activity Guide
CAC has found that activities are a driving force in cadet retention, and giving cadets a solid foundation in CAP principles that will continue to be valuable for their futures as leaders and officers in Civil Air Patrol. For this reason the CAC is looking for ways to increase the number of activities available to cadets in the region and make it easier for cadets to get involved in planning activities on a squadron, group, and wing level. The RMR CAC believes they can do this by making it easier for the region to organize RCLSs around the region, making it so squadrons and wings have a guide to creating activities that will make it easier for them to host successful activities, and creating more activities around the region for cadets to attend.
Background Information –
Over the past year, RMR CAC had been inactive. The Chairperson had stepped down from the position and no new Chairperson was appointed to run the RMR CAC. As a result, all continuity records from the RMR CAC had been lost except for records kept by individual members who had been involved in past terms.
Start of Quarter condition –
The RMR CAC started the quarter being totally inactive with only two active members being the RMR CAC Chairmen, C/Capt Kenrik Goettsche at the time, and the RMR CAC Vice- Chairmen, C/Maj Nick McKinney at the time, who had be newly appointed by the Region Commander and DCP. Work was beginning to reconstruct the CAC. No other progress had been made.
Progress during Quarter –
During the this fall quarter the CAC established a Constitution and Bylaws, developed goals for the term, started work on these goals, and increased membership from zero wings to three wings.
Wing Participation:
The wings that are active are Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado, wings with one wing, Idaho, expected to join this coming month. The only wing that has made no progress this quarter is Montana Wing. The Montana Wing DCP has been repeatedly contacting the squadrons about getting involved in the CAC, but they have been unresponsive. If CAC is to become active in Montana wing in the near future, some sort of command action may be necessary.
In regards to the other wings in the region, Utah, and Wyoming have a fully active CAC and are currently working on projects in their wings and making excellent progress. The chairman of Utah CAC is C/Capt Quinton Mount, and the chairman of the Wyoming CAC is C/2d Lt Josh Kirkman. Colorado wing does not have an active wing CAC presently, but has active group CACs that is working to come together. Until that time, C/Capt Rachel Murphy is acting as the interim representative.
Leadership:
There are two members leading the region CAC and they are C/Maj Kenrik Goettsche, Chairman, and C/Capt Rachel Murphy, Vice-Chairperson. C/Maj McKinney stepped down from his position in the beginning of the term due to having to high of a demand on his time between school and other CAP obligations. The only leadership position in the RMR CAC that has remained vacant is the recorder position. Work is being done to find a recorder.
Future Plans of the CAC -
The CAC plans to continue working on its goals it has set for this term, and is looking into creating a web site to increase involvement in CAC. The CAC has found a platform suitable to create a web site for free and is easy to link to other web sites
For more information regarding anything discussed in this report please contact the RMR CAC Chairmen, C/Maj. Kenrik Goettsche, through the following:
Phone: 208-412-1751