JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Sgt. Maj. of the Army Dan Dailey visited U.S. Army Alaska at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson Sept. 21 and at Fort Wainwright Sept. 22.
The visit was a planned stop before the senior enlisted Soldier in the Army headed off to Korea.
Dailey led off his first day in the last frontier by having breakfast with junior noncommissioned officers at The Wilderness Inn. He met with sergeants and staff sergeants and discussed his vision and some of their concerns over a meal.
From there, Dailey met with cadre members from the SFC Christopher R. Brevard Noncommissioned Officer Academy.
The schedule showed a planned briefing, but what ended up happening was a back and forth discussion between Dailey and those at the tip of the spear when it comes to training the Army's future leaders.
"It was a great opportunity to really get into why some of the proposed changes are being proposed," said Staff Sgt. David L. Petty Jr., a small group instructor at the NCOA.
Petty said the unrestrained back and forth was more valuable than any planned briefing or town hall could have been, because of the fluidity of the discussion.
Others benefited from the conversational style of meetings Dailey held over the course of his visit.
Dailey had lunch with more than 20 people closely involved in the U.S. Army Alaska (USARAK) Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) team, from Sexual Assault Response Coordinators to victim advocates and members of the Criminal Investigation Command.
"He knows the SHARP program is doing well with victim advocacy, but he wants us to improve in prevention," said Charlea Allen, the USARAK SHARP program manager.
Allen used the informal setting to tell Dailey how she plans to improve prevention, and a big part of it is the bystander intervention campaign that is in its infancy right now.
The campaign is designed to reward bystanders who intervene when risky behavior is occurring by recognizing those bystanders once a month. Anyone can nominate anyone within USARAK for this recognition, said Allen.
"The sergeant major of the Army seemed impressed by our commitment to this program," Allen said.
Allen said, "It was a huge opportunity, because he asked us to speak frankly, and we were able to give our concerns and recommendations to one of the top guys in the Army."
Dailey finished the JBER portion of his visit with Soldier for Life and the Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers.
While at Fort Wainwright, the Sergeant Major of the Army visited with Soldiers from the 17th Combat Support Sustainment Battalion, toured Basset Army Community Hospital, and met with members of the USARAK SHARP team.
"He had meetings with both SHARP teams, which is important, because he actually got a good look at the SHARP environment at both installations," said Allen.