Air Force Caring for People 2009

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Air Force

Caring for People

Top 11 Initiatives

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• Develop ideas in targeted areas to benefit

The Air Force Family

Overview

•School Support

•Guard and Reserve Support

•Special Needs Support

•Deployment Support

•Family Support

•Single Airmen Support

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• Analyze SWOT – Perform analysis on strengths, weaknesses,

opportunities and threats facing a focus area

• Generate Themes

– Transform analysis into themes

• Develop Initiatives (8)

– Transform themes into initiatives

• Select Initiatives

– Present to large group for voting

Working Group Duties

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Family Support

Capt. Sundonia J. Wonnum

Family Advocacy Officer

Kadena Air Base

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Family Support

TITLE: Fenced Integrated Delivery System Funding

SCOPE:

• No dedicated Integrated Delivery System (IDS) funds

• Agencies using own funds to support initiatives

• Affects quality of services for Airman and families

RECOMMENDATION:

• Budgeted funds at Headquarters Air Force

• Fencing of funds at all levels

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Family Support

TITLE: Lets Talk Technology

SCOPE:

• Lack of centralization / uniformity in information dissemination

• Not using popular communication tools

• Affects opportunities to reach Air Force community

RECOMMENDATION:

• Create social marketing plan for military technical resources

• Fund a webmaster for each base to build/maintain

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Special Needs Child Support

Capt Kraig Smith

Chaplain

FE Warren AFB

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Special Needs Child Support

TITLE: Establish resources for effective special needs program

SCOPE:

• Lack of dedicated resources to provide a systematic AF approach for offering special needs support and services (i.e. manpower, funding, space, etc)

RECOMMENDATION:

• Build resource requirement into POM (FY11) for manning, funding, etc.

• Establish a position description outlining requirements for AF special needs support program

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Guard and Reserve Family Support

Ms. Denise Rampolla

Wing Family Program Coordinator

153rd AW WYANG (Cheyenne)

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Guard and Reserve Family Support

TITLE: Permanent Equitable Resources (Funding/Manpower) for Guard and Reserve Airman and Family Services

SCOPE: We have one Family Program Coordinator in each Air Guard Wing and fewer in the Air Force Reserve

• We are trying to provide EVERYTHING our Active Duty counterparts do with a full staff .. We sometimes fall short of the goal

• Frequently we have to be REACTIVE when we would prefer to be PROACTIVE!

RECOMMENDATION:

• Expand Reserve Forces Airman and Family Services

• Ensure “POM” includes resources for Guard and Reserve

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Guard and Reserve Family Support

TITLE: Erase discrepancies to access services

SCOPE: Guard/Reserve deploy and fight with active duty while continuing to support missions at home base; members/ families face same stressors and challenges as active duty families yet access to benefits/services are limited or non existent

• Lack of access to Air Force Aid Society funds impacts mission readiness

• Late orders cause lapse in TRICARE benefits

• Gaps in child care caused by connection to duty status

RECOMMENDATION:

• Eliminate active duty status tied to benefits/entitlements/ resources

• Create Guard/Reserve Financial Aid program

• Eliminate ties to orders/DEERS to access TRICARE

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Deployment Support

LtCol Robert Rottschafer

Mental Health Flight Commander

Kirtland AFB

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Deployment Support

TITLE: De-stigmatize Mental Health

SCOPE:

• People are not pursuing help/treatment due to negative effects of labeling and identifying those who seek Mental Health assistance

RECOMMENDATION:

• High level review of policies and processes making it as “safe” to go to a Mental Health provider as any other health care provider

• Embed Mental Health providers at unit level

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Deployment Support TITLE: Family Separation Continuum of Care

SCOPE:

• Need to coordinate all services and agencies throughout the mobilization /deployment cycle

• Gaps in services and communication culture of our communities has changed

RECOMMENDATION:

• Create base-level mobilization/deployment cycle support coordinator

• Leadership to enable agencies and family members access to latest technology

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Schools Support

Else Milner

Interim Flight Chief, Airman and Family Services

Davis Montham AFB

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Schools Support TITLE: AF Centrally Funded School Liaison Position

SCOPE:

• No central funding for CONUS and OCONUS bases

• Not a line item in Unit Manpower Document

• Identified need for education transition assistance

• Military Families and children impacted by high ops tempo

• Families continue to struggle as they transition to new schools

RECOMMENDATION:

• Centrally fund and validate manpower requirements for School Liaison position for each installation

• Provide appropriate policy and guidance to include

• Alignment under MSG

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Single Airman Support

TSgt Kanisha Carson

Mental Health Technician

Incirlik AB, Turkey

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Single Airman Support

TITLE: The Voice of the Single Airman

SCOPE: Single Airman want to be Heard, Understood and Acknowledged

• Limited voice creates barriers to communication, lack of a sense of community which affects retention and recruitment

RECOMMENDATION:

• USAF level Single Airmen Summit creating initiatives

• Modify Army BOSS Program to meet AF needs

• Change AFI 90-501 CAIB/IDS to include Single Airman as core members

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Single Airman Support

TITLE: Single Airman Coordinator (SAC)

“Not an additional duty”

SCOPE: Single Airmen are often overlooked in community programs which leads to a sense of isolation and discontent.

• The needs and wants of Single Airmen deserve a focus

• This will increase retention, increase mission readiness and enhance well being

RECOMMENDATION:

• Establish a Single Airman Coordinator (SAC) funded position, with the initial focus First Term Airmen (includes Officers) , long term focus is deployed Single Airmen

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Single Airman Support

TITLE: From Sponsorship to Mentorship

SCOPE: Single Airman lack a sense of community support

• No sense of belonging leads to loss of Airmen and trouble off base

• Affects can be felt by every Single Airman, base and USAF at large

RECOMMENDATION:

• Provide written guidance and utilize media to emphasize intentional sponsorship and mentorship of Single Airman

• Official Air Force Adopt-An-Airman program

• Warm handoff from Sponsorship to Mentorship mode

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Additional Initiatives

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Family Support

TITLE: Targeted Local Needs Assessment

SCOPE:

• Too many surveys • Timeliness makes data less relevant

• Negative effects • Leadership, helping agencies, community ability to effect change

RECOMMENDATION:

• Develop more efficient Air Force survey process

• Develop survey template/tools to assess local needs

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Family Support

TITLE: Encourage Partnerships with External Agencies

SCOPE:

• Diminishing internal Air Force resources

• Need for relevant family services

• Promote Air Force Esprit-do-corp

RECOMMENDATION:

• Establish Air Force public affairs campaign

• Revise Community Action Information Board/Integrated Delivery Service to direct external partnerships

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Family Support

TITLE: Build Sense of Community

SCOPE:

• Lost sense of community

• Prevents cohesion and decreases retention

• Entire Air Force community affected

RECOMMENDATION:

• Redefine community

• Build standardized self-help resources

• Revitalize sponsorship programs

• Standardize ‘dot-com’ with local information

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Family Support

TITLE: Caring for people: taking our services to the streets

SCOPE:

• Services not available where people/community are

• Lack of knowledge/marketing + time constraints

• Affects community and staff

RECOMMENDATION:

• Implement mobile services

• Individualized needs assessment

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Family Support

TITLE: Community Helping the Community

SCOPE:

• People unwilling to work “uncommon tour of duty”

• If roles defined – not being followed by Integrated Delivery Service/Community Action Information Board

• Limits ability to offer programs

RECOMMENDATION:

• Invigorate the Community Action Information Board

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Family Support

TITLE: Back to the Future

SCOPE:

• Military pride/culture/esprit de corp lost

• Disconnected from legacy

• Affects leadership, military members, families

• Lost sense of community and unity

RECOMMENDATION:

• Funding/implementing family wingman day

• Fund/bring back dining-ins/outs, balls, retreats

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Special Needs Child Support

TITLE: Service Delivery and Availability

SCOPE:

- Special needs population subjected to inconsistent services (military branches, installations, states, school districts)

- Families denied appropriate care which potentially impedes the mission

- Potential non-compliance with federal statutes

RECOMMENDATION: Establish corporate policy to develop and enforce a comprehensive delivery system

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Additional Initiatives