By Melissa Buckley, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. – (March 17, 2026) Alphonso Brown, reception operations chief with the U.S. Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence’s 43rd Adjutant General Battalion (Reception), is the Transformation and Training Command’s 2025 Adjutant General Senior Civilian of the Year Award winner.

“I am very proud and honored to have been recognized by T2COM as the very first AG Senior Civilian Award winner,” Brown said. “It feels good to bring it home to MSCoE and the 43rd.”

As Fort Leonard Wood’s reception operations chief, Brown manages in processing procedures for 25,000 to 30,000 of the U.S. Army’s newest recruits each year.

From arriving at the airport to joining their training units, Brown said his “scope of responsibility encompasses providing operational overwatch for the entire process.”

“It brings me great joy to be a member of the team that provides such a positive first impression to our country’s young men and women willingly committing their time to military service,” he added.

The retired U.S. Army veteran has served at the reception battalion for the last six years.

“Our goal is to provide the best possible first impression to the new members of the U.S. Army.I believe the work we do here is invaluable as it allows trainees to leave here fully on-boarded and able to focus on the training-at-hand without distractors,” Brown said. “We have a tremendous role in beginning the process of molding America’s future warriors.”

Lt. Col. Kurtis Van Allen, 43d Adjutant General Battalion commander, said his unit is “blessed and fortunate” to have Brown working there.

“Mr. Brown’s lifelong dedication to our nation, from hismilitary careerto his civilian service, is exemplary. As the operational engine of our mission, he ensures thousands of trainees receive a first impression of the Army defined by discipline and professionalism,” Van Allen said.

According to the 43rd Adjutant General Battalion Command Sgt. Maj. Mia Gillens, Brown will now be competing for the Army-level 2025 Adjutant General Civilian of the Year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post more than 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (March 13, 2026) – Homeland defense first responders specializing in hazardous material incidents receive cutting edge training through the 1st Lt. Joseph Terry First Responder Training Facility at Fort Leonard Wood.

The facility, part of the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence Homeland Defense Civil Support Office‘s Incident Response Training Department, is designed to provide real-world training for U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Response Enterprise Soldiers, along with joint service members and civilians in related fields.

“We are the single-handed proponent for providing HAZMAT and HAZMAT technician training across the force,” said Eric Fikes, Incident Response Training Department supervisory training specialist. “In terms of our capabilities, we can essentially paint any (HAZMAT) scenario in the world.”

According to Fikes, what gives the facility the ability to offer such a wide variety of training using hands-on, real-world scenarios, are the many locations featuring different environments and simulators.

“We can go subterranean with our cave complex, and we can train in confined spaces,” Fikes said. “We have simulators that mimic a train derailment, bus accident scenario, overturned 18-wheeler or various chemical, biological and radiological laboratory set-ups.”

Pfc. Malik Carruthers, a Soldier with the 401st Military Police Battalion at Fort Hood, Texas, is enrolled in the CBRN Response Enterprise Basic Course. He said he found the simulators useful.

“It was amazing getting to take what we learned in the classroom and getting to apply that to the hands-on training,” Carruthers said. “We learned how to identify certain tankers, what hazardous materials they contain and how to properly put on the equipment to protect ourselves from harsh chemicals.”

Fikes said during the CRE Basic Course, students learn how to recognize symbols, called placards, that identify the presence of hazardous material and identify what that material is.

“After day one, the students can say, ‘hey, now I know what these placards mean, I know the danger associated with those particular hazards,’ and by the end of the course they will know how to defend and use available resources to keep people, property and equipment safe,” he said.

The CRE Basic Course is nationally accredited, and graduates can take that accreditation with them when they go back to their units.

“When students graduate, they can reach out to our compliance department and get their International Fire Services Accreditation Congress and Pro Board certificate,” Fikes said. “They can get that signed, stamped, nationally recognized certificate.”

Carruthers said he thought the IFSAC and Pro Board certificate will help him as he furthers his career.

“If I choose to stay in the military, I can use this information to help better myself and my Soldiers, or if I choose to go into the civilian side there’s multiple jobs that just opened up to me,” Carruthers said. “Now I have this vast knowledge and a certificate that says, ‘I’ve been here and I know what I’m talking about.'”

The facility also hosts the CRE Advanced Course, Mass Casualty Decontamination Course, Civil Support Skills Course, Analytical Laboratory Course, Unified Command Suite and Air Force Emergency Management training.

“The CRE Advanced Course’s target audience is a little more experienced in terms of hazardous material operations,” Fikes said. “It’s attended mostly by 74D Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Specialists.”

During the two-month-long Civil Support Skills Course, the team is “fine tuning the skills our National Guard responders need to go downrange and be safe and effective,” he said. “The objective is to keep people safe. We are essentially saving lives.”

Another advantage to the courses, Fikes added, is the collective knowledge and skills students can share with their units.

“Knowledge gets forced multiplied as more responders get put through the ringer and take that knowledge back to their home units,” he said. “It increases our ability to respond nationally to a domestic incident.”

And that is exactly what Carruthers intends to do after he graduates from the basic course.

“We are going to start implementing this knowledge by making it part of the unit’s training,” Carruthers said. “If we’re in a situation where we need to be called on to be first responders or help on the scene, we will know how to decontaminate properly, put on the proper personal protective equipment and get established.”

A complete list of HDSCO courses offered at Fort Leonard Wood may be viewed in their course catalog.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post more than 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

By Melissa Buckley, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (March 12, 2026) – More than 200 airmen training with the U.S. Air Force’s 368th Training Squadron spent Feb. 27 at Fort Leonard Wood learning about unmanned aerial systems during an exercise designed to cultivate Air Force Airmindedness and Warrior Ethos.

The 368th Training Squadron, based at Fort Leonard Wood, provides initial skills and advanced level training in the areas of ground transportation, engineering, emergency management, and pavements and construction equipment.

According to Air Force Tech Sgt. Christopher Moss, Pavements and Equipment Apprentice Course instructor, the Air Force Specialty Code schools at Fort Leonard Wood’s Air Force squadron usually train separately, but this day was unique because it brought them all together.

“It allows them to integrate with our other schoolhouses, bringing them together as one force instead of each person learning just their craft,” Moss said. “Producing more well-rounded airmen for the force.”

Air Force Capt. Nathan Elking, 368th Training Squadron director of operations, said the detachment calls the unique training event BRACER FORGE, which stands for Basic Reinforcement Agile Combat Employment Range Forward Operations Readiness Generation Exercise.

“It is a continuation of the training airmen receive at basic training named Primary Agile Combat Employment Range Forward Operations Readiness Generation Exercise, or PACER FORGE. Both exercise initiatives are designed to instill airmindedness and warrior ethos in our airmen,” Elking said.

The squadron’s BRACER FORGE topics vary, but the current UAS focus was driven by the unit’s AFSCs, which according to Elking play a key role in airfield damage assessment and rapid airfield damage recovery.

“Before each iteration of BRACER FORGE, we provide the participating airmen with an operation order for the day and reporting instructions with a training scenario to recover a damaged airfield” Elking said.

Squadron instructors prepared four stations for the airmen to rotate through.

At the airfield damage assessment challenge, Elking said teams conducted an airfield damage assessment on a simulated airfield and relayed the information to their teammates in an emergency operations center.

“The airmen in the EOC were tasked with creating a map of the airfield using the details their counterparts called in over the radio,” Elking said.

While at the UAS reporting challenge, teams established defensive fighting positions and reported UAS activity to their teammates in the EOC.

“They were tasked with consolidating that information into a report to send up,” Elking said.

The other two stations were a high intensity physical fitness event and a UAS capabilities overview. Soldiers from the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence Combat Training Company supplied that UAS portion of training.

“We are not subject matter experts on counter UAS and UAS employment and being able to leverage our Army partners at MSCoE played a significant role in the exercise’s success,” Elking said.

According to Sgt. 1st Class Austin Priebe, Combat Training Company UAS chief, his mission with the airmen was to introduce small UAS threats, and teach the basics of identifying, reacting to and reporting small UAS threats.

Priebe said most trainees he instructs have watched or controlled a simulated UAS in video games, but being able to experience a UAS in person, see and hear a drone up close, is “essential to prepare service members for what they will see in current and future conflicts.”

“We conducted practical exercises on scanning for sUAS, completing a report and showed the airmen what they look like from an elevated viewpoint,” Priebe said.

This was the Combat Training Company’s first time facilitating interservice UAS training.

“I’ve largely been focused on enabling training and instruction to the Army units here on Fort Leonard Wood since the inception of our UAS program this past fall,” Priebe said.

“As the battlefield changes rapidly, so does our training requirements. If our organization can provide more realistic and in-depth training to our brothers and sisters in other branches, we only stand to benefit as a military.”

Priebe said his team is looking forward to conducting more interservice training events in the future.

At the end of the day, BRACER FORGE was a catalyst for innovation, according to Elking.

“By exposing airmen to the dual nature of UASs – both as a threat to counter and a tool to master – we challenge them to rethink their mission sets and pioneer new solutions for the modern battlefield,” Elking said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post more than 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

By Melissa Buckley, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Feb. 27, 2026) – A member of Fort Leonard Wood Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Directorate is being recognized by the U.S. Army Installation Management Command as the 2025 Employee of the Year in the category of Recreation.

Awardee Aaron O’Donoghue is the Combined Activities manager, for MWR’s Auto Skills Center, Leisure Travel Services and Outdoor Adventure Center.

“It is a huge honor, and I am incredibly humbled to receive an award like this. If there is one thing I’ve learned over the years, it is that employee of the year is rarely a solo achievement and this recognition belongs to be shared with the people who surround me every day,” O’Donoghue said.

“My program leaders and staff are truly the backbone and heartbeat of everything we do and achieve. I am only as good as my team, and this award is a testament to their buy-in, hard work, and commitment to excellence in serving our community.”

O’Donoghue said he has worked for Fort Leonard Wood’s MWR program for nearly 19 years.

“I started under the hoods of service members’ vehicles as an automotive technician at the Auto Skills Center. From there, I moved to the Services and Support Division as a supply technician. In 2019, I returned to the Business Recreation Division as the manager of the Leisure Travel Office, before absorbing the Outdoor Recreation and Auto Skills programs under my oversight a couple of years ago,” he said.

To O’Donoghue, the work his team does for the Fort Leonard Wood community through MWR is “vital” to service members and their families.

“From the LTS team moving thousands of Soldiers during holiday block leave, to the educational classes provided by Outdoor Recreation Center, to the significant cost-saving services offered at the Auto Skills Center, LTS and ODR – we provide the resources that make military life more enjoyable and manageable,” O’Donoghue said.

He added that MWR’s mission is special to him, because of the fond memories the program created for him as a child.

“I grew up as an Army brat and MWR has always been a big part of my life. I remember outdoor recreation trips at Fort Carson and Bavaria, youth sports hockey and leisure travel Disneyland trips from Fort Irwin, and of course Fort Leonard Wood,” O’Donoghue said. “I spent afternoons with friends at Pippen Youth Center until we moved off the installation. Even then, I was still playing paintball, bowling, swimming and attending every concert or major MWR event I could.”

“For our service members and their families an installation isn’t just a place of work – it’s their hometown. MWR delivers the quality-of-life services and programs that provide vital outlets for resilience.”

As the Combined Activities manager for three MWR programs, O’Donoghue leads a team of recreation professionals and works directly with supervisors to enhance the programs and event offerings that keep service members and their families engaged and recharged.

“I strategically create and manage the annual operating budget and contracts to ensure our programs remain sustainable and affordable for Soldiers to include planning for future enhancements of the programs,” O’Donoghue said.

Fort Leonard Wood MWR Business and Recreation Division Chief Jeffrey Barrett said he “could not be prouder of Mr. O’Donoghue.”

“Mr. O’Donoghue has made some very exceptional improvements within his area of responsibility and remains a beacon of success for our division and programs,” Barrett said. “It is a privilege to be able to work side by side with him and his team each day.”

U.S. Army Garrison Fort Leonard Wood Commander Col. Steven Bartley agreed.

“Aaron’s leadership has been a primary catalyst for operational excellence across three major recreation programs. Through a strategic blend of creative initiative and disciplined leadership, he achieved a measurable 18% increase in programming output,” Bartley said. “This growth is a direct result of his ability to cultivate high-performing teams and deliver high-impact community initiatives. His sustained record of superior service and operational success makes him an exemplary candidate for the award.”

O’Donoghue will receive his award at the Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Conference to be held in Florida next month.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post more than 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

By Maria Cassidy, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Feb. 23, 2026) – What was once a small rural community and farmland is now the largest training area on Fort Leonard Wood. Training Area 244, also known as the Normandy Training Area, stretches over 900 acres and serves as the primary joint-service training environment for Department of War construction engineers.

Managed by the 554th Engineer Battalion’s Horizontal Skills Division, Training Area 244 contains remote equipment operation sites, centralized maintenance bays, training facilities, administrative buildings and classrooms.

The area is shared by the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force, creating a realistic joint-training environment that replicates battlefield and garrison operations.

U.S. Army construction engineers who conduct their initial training there include the military occupational specialties of 12N Horizontal Construction Engineer, 12G Quarrying Specialist and 91L Construction Equipment Repairer.

These Soldiers train on nine major equipment platforms, including dump trucks, excavators, wheel loaders, backhoe loaders, scrapers, graders and cranes.

According to Patrick Holt, HSD training specialist, “construction skills directly enable mission success across the battlefield.”

“You can’t build a road, hospital, or helicopter landing pad without pushing dirt first,” Holt explained, adding that every combat engineering task begins with mastering these basic principles.

Holt said engineers learning these MOSs at Training Area 244 serve as force multipliers on the battlefield.

“Everybody’s dependent on you to do their job,” Holt said. “They can’t do their job until you’re done with yours.”

To better prepare students for today’s battlefield, Training Area 244 has updated its training approach by including simulation technology. The bulldozer, excavator, loader, scraper and grader simulators allow students to develop proficiency before operating live equipment.

Holt said training continues to transform to meet the demands of a technology-driven force.

“We don’t train what we used to train. We train on what’s relevant to today’s Army,” he said.

While HSD maintains the largest footprint on the training area, the U.S. Air Force trains a comparable number of airmen in their courses.

According to Dustin Silk, a training manager with the Air Force’s 368th Training Squadron located on Fort Leonard Wood, more than 2,000 airmen conduct their training on Training Area 244 annually. The U.S. Air Force specialties 2T1X1 Ground Transportation and collocated training for 3E2X1 Pavements and Equipment courses train there.

Like Air Force students, Marine’s train on service-specific pieces of heavy equipment while also integrating with Army courses and simulators.

Marines in the occupations of 1341 Engineer Equipment Mechanic train alongside 91L Construction Equipment Repairer Soldiers in a combined maintenance course, while Marine 1345 Engineer Equipment Operators train with 12N Horizontal Construction Engineer Soldiers on grader simulators.

Marine Master Gunnery Sgt. Jason Giles, Engineer Equipment Instruction Company Academics chief with the U.S. Marine Corps Detachment at Fort Leonard Wood, discussed how cross training is a defining feature of the training area.

“This shared instruction increases efficiency, maximizes manpower and exposes students to joint operational standards they will encounter during deployments”, Giles said.

Navy Chief Petty Officer Tyler Brown, Equipment Operator School course manager with the Navy’s Center for Seabees and Facilities Engineering Detachment also at Fort Leonard Wood, shared a similar outlook on the Navy’s presence on the training area, and combined training between Navy students and their U.S. Army counterparts.

Brown said integrated training “greatly enhances the operational readiness of military engineering forces for real-world missions around the world”.

According to Brown, approximately 200 Navy Equipment Operators complete the naval-specific instruction alongside their Army counterparts each year.

The training area’s capabilities exceed further than land movement. It also houses the U.S. Army Prime Power School, training 12P Power Distribution Specialists and 12Q Power Production Specialists, and serving as the only institution that produces the U.S. Army’s medium-voltage power experts.

According to Chief Warrant Officer 4 Michael Dugan, USAPPS commander and deputy commandant, about 140 Soldiers and sailors train there annually on multiple generations of power systems.

Dugan said combined training, “fosters a joint learning environment that reduces redundancy while preparing Soldiers and sailors to execute global missions ranging from combat and contingency operations to disaster response.”

To learn more about U.S. Army MOSs mentioned in this article, visit the 12N Horizontal Construction Engineer, 12G Quarrying Specialist, 12P Power Distribution Specialist and 91L Construction Equipment Repairer pages on goarmy.com.

More photos of training at Training Area 244 may be viewed on Fort Leonard Wood’s Flickr page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post more than 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Feb. 20, 2026) – According to the Fort Leonard Wood Directorate of Public Works Natural Resources Branch, the U.S. Forest Service is planning a prescribed burn for Fort Leonard Wood’s Range 24 and Ranges 1-10, Feb. 21-22, weather permitting. Smoke may be visible and those in the area should use caution.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post more than 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.