HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. – 66th Air Base Group officials held an Airman Leadership School graduation ceremony at the Minuteman Commons here Feb. 17.
Class 22-Bravo, comprised of 11 Airmen, Guardians and Coast Guardsmen, completed five weeks of a professional military education course designed to prepare enlisted members to supervise subordinates.
“This course requires a lot of self-reflection on topics and situations you don’t usually think about, and instructors gave us a lot to think about for our future roles,” said Senior Airman Kayla Stevens, paralegal in the 66th Air Base Group Staff Judge Advocate Office.
Students studied the profession of arms and worked to build effective communication strategies before returning to their respective units.
“We’re now thinking about self-development, gaining trust with subordinates, and just how to act in unique situations or challenges that we could face within our offices,” said Stevens.
Senior Master Sgt. Brian Tisdall, 66th Force Support Squadron superintendent, served as the class mentor and guest speaker for the graduation ceremony.
“The students were always eager to learn and showed a desire to better themselves and their Airmen,” he said. “I believe the future of the military is in great hands as these students progress into supervisory and leadership roles.”
During the ceremony, school officials announced the names of those who received awards.
The school’s top award, the John L. Levitow Award, went to Senior Airman Kevin Manley, 66th Force Support Squadron. This award goes to the student who achieves the highest overall standing from a combination of academic scores, performance evaluation and leadership qualities. It's the highest honor awarded to an enlisted professional military education student.
The Academic Achievement Award went to Petty Officer 3rd Class Jordan Evans, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Boston. This award goes to the student who achieves the highest summative scores throughout the class and displays characteristics of an effective leader. The recipient also must have fostered teamwork within the training environment.
Staff Sgt. Ahmad Hawkins, 6th Space Warning Squadron, Cape Cod Space Force Station, Massachusetts, received the Commandant Award. This award goes to the student who displays all the characteristics of a leader. Once all other factors are considered, the ALS commandant renders the final judgment on who receives this award.
Other personnel who completed the course include:
Senior Airman Derek Archer, 436th Maintenance Squadron, Westover Air Reserve Base, Massachusetts
Senior Airman Cory Beltran, Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Detachment 12
Senior Airman Tabitha Bullock, 66th Force Support Squadron
Senior Airman Brittany Hinton, 66th Security Forces Squadron
Senior Dominick Hopson, 66th Comptroller Squadron
Senior Airman Emangelyn Pascua, 66th Medical Squadron
Petty Officer Third Class Marcos Lavado, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Boston
Each graduate earned the U.S. Air Force noncommissioned officer professional military education graduation ribbon.