HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah — The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Hill Air Force Base is building a stronger workforce through a new MBA-level training course.
This summer, 15 program managers from across the AFLCMC organization were competitively selected to enroll in an experimental Project Management Professional program. As part of their training, students have the opportunity to earn their PMP certification — an industry credential for project managers.
“While project management is taught by various DOD and Air Force training organizations, the courses of instruction are predominantly DOD-centric, acquisition-based processes,” said Jim Warburton, Academic Center for Excellence advisor for the AFCLMC. “This course was devised to break the DOD paradigm and expand on programmatic workforce skills to include the public-private sector experience.”
In order to create the course, the Hill AFB ACE Office teamed with Weber State University in Ogden and the Project Management Institute to build a curriculum for its project managers that focused on public industry standards for project management.
The course was conducted June 12 through Sept. 4 at WSU’s Center for Continuing Education Campus in Clearfield. The curriculum examined the roles and skills of a project manager and project office. It also highlighted the phases of the project life cycle, specifically the activities, requirements, methodologies, and tools common in project management.
Course graduates:
- Bryan Bolin
- Lainie Byerly
- Bradley Clark
- Juliana D’Amore
- Thomas D’Amore
- Staci Draney
- John Fountain
- Landon Hallows
- Emory Lamb
- James Loken
- Christopher Roland
- Angelo Santa Agueda
- Katey Shaffer
- Christopher Summers
- Matthew Vanderhoof
“This Project Management Professional training course is a first for Hill Air Force Base, with fifteen of our Air Force Life Cycle Management Center project managers successfully completing it,” said Robert Colvin, AFLCMC senior site lead. “I’m proud of all of them and their efforts to earn their project manager certifications, the gold-standard in industry for project management.”
In addition to receiving a WSU course completion certificate, students are eligible to take the PMP certification exam. As of the Sept. 25 graduation ceremony, four students had taken and passed the comprehensive test that has an average pass rate on the first attempt of 50%.
“We’re excited to have the opportunity to provide these needs to the community… it’s where innovation meets education,” said Jeff Stuart, director for WSU Military Outreach and Programs. “We look forward to many more educational opportunities.”
Students were selected to participate in the PMP course based on stringent PMI eligibility requirements and favorable supervisor endorsements. Warburton said another course is being planned and will be announced at a later date.
For more information, contact Warburton at 801-777-5210 or email james.warburton@us.af.mil.
