New mentoring program at Dyess

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Shannon Hall
  • 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Mentoring is an important aspect of the United States Air Force. By helping young Airmen develop, we are also developing the Air Force structure.

Tech. Sgt. Holli Edgett, assigned to the 7th Medical Support Squadron and Dyess 5/6 club vice president, started a Speed Mentorship program February 2015 at Dyess Air Force Base to enable Airmen to pursue mentoring in a non-standard forum.

"The goal of the Speed Mentorship program is to open communication and networking lines between Airmen and NCO tiers, fostering cross-AFSC mentoring and helping individuals from both tiers develop," said Edgett. "I participated in a similar event while stationed at Yokota Air Base, Japan and felt it was a helpful and fun experience."

The event consists of 10-15 NCOs, and the same number of Airmen sitting across from one another and having a dedicated 10 minutes to discuss topics of the Airmen's choice. This forum allows for Airmen to speak with individuals of other career fields, so they receive a wide range of insight from across the Air Force.

"The idea is to provide Airmen an opportunity to gather information to better themselves within their career and personally," said Edgett. "The NCOs use this time to gain insight into problems that face today's Airmen and valuable communication skills they can take back to their shops."

Some questions asked included the handling of finances, personal relationships, cross-training and advancing in careers.

"Many of the Airmen expressed difficulties pertaining to different career fields, which vary from one to another," said Staff Sgt. Daren Marshall, 7th Security Forces Squadron military working dog trainer. "I feel that this is a better forum due to the fact that Airmen are given the opportunity to speak with many NCO's of other career fields."

In this type of forum, Airmen can gain more insight into the Air Force since they are offered moments with numerous NCOs. The more perspectives that are heard, the broader an Airmen's knowledge can be.

"This mentoring experience was better because I received advice from six different people outside of my career field," said A1C Kyrah Smith, 7th Medical Operations Squadron front desk clerk. "The entire experience was very motivating for me, and I will definitely recommend this to other Airmen."

Although the Speed Mentorship program is designed for Airmen to walk away more educated, the NCOs that participate as mentors learn new things as well.

"This was truly a rewarding experience for me and shined a light on many of the problems and concerns that the Airmen have that I was not aware of beforehand," said Marshall. "This was my first time participating, but it will not be my last."

The Speed Mentorship program takes place the first Tuesday of every other month. Airmen who would like to participate should keep their eyes open for advertisements and emails that are sent to the entire base population.

"I would encourage all Airmen and NCOs alike to get involved in this program," said Marshall. "It helps Airmen achieve the most out of their career and set them on the right path to success to help achieve, not only the Dyess, but Air Force mission as well."