GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, GERMANY -- Development of a generic curriculum guide for non-commissioned officers (NCO) was the theme of a curriculum development workshop held at the George C. Marshall Center in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, April 10-13. 

Photo: Dr. David Emelifeonwu, Defence Education Outreach Director, Canadian Defence Academy and Academic Lead of the PME RC for NCOs project (seated second from right) discusses issues regarding the curriculum methodology with Partner members (seated from left: SGM Ardian Lifo, Albania; CSM Darius Zubrickas, Lithuania; and LTC Azad Alakbarov, Azerbaijan). Standing from left: Mr. John Kane, USA, PfPC Program Manager and CSM Richard Blanc, Switzerland, PME RC NCO Leader.

More than 30 participants took part in the curricula development event, representing some 12 countries and organizations.  Representatives from SHAPE, the NATO International Staff, and various defense universities in the European-Eurasia theater participated in the event which was sponsored by the Partnership for Peace Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes (PfPC). Countries represented included Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Canada, Czech Republic, Georgia, Germany, Lithuania, Moldova, Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United States.

 The workshop is part of an ongoing PfPC initiative designed to strengthen defense institution building in support of NATO’s Education and Training for Reform Initiative, in this instance through preparation of a series of generic or “Reference” curricula for Professional Military Education (PME RC). 

“Development of a robust NCO curriculum is deemed of special importance to countries of the former Soviet Union where an NCO cadre was non-existent,” said Dr. David C. Emelifeonwu, Senior Staff Officer of Defence Education Outreach, Canadian Defence Academy, Ontario, Canada and Academic Lead for this curriculum development process.

The PfPC is a multi-national organization dedicated to strengthening defense and military education and research through enhanced institutional and national cooperation. Currently, the PfPC consists of more than 350 organizations based in 42 countries from the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) region.  The George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies hosts the Consortium’s administrative staff in its facilities in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.

Photo: CSM Ludek Kolesa, Senior Enlisted Advisor, Czech Republic MoD and PME RC Peer Reviewer, discusses an issue regarding the generic PME curriculum for NCOs with Dr. David Emelifeonwu, Defence Education Outreach Director, Canadian Defence Academy and Academic Lead of the PME RC for NCOs project