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Back to the C-School Matrix
U. S. Coast Guard
Auxiliary C-Schools
Frequently Asked Questions
by
Albert R. Stiles, Jr.
Training and Performance Support Branch Chief (G-OCX)
Introduction
Coast Guard Auxiliarists have an opportunity to
gain additional knowledge, skills, and qualifications by participating
in training programs. Participation in training enhances the
Auxiliarist’s competence and enables increased professionalism in the
performance of most Auxiliary services. This article amplifies some of
the information and processes concerning Class C-Schools. The Coast
Guard budgeted approximately $700,000.00 for Auxiliary C-Schools in
Fiscal Year 2005. The information provided in this article is in a
“Frequently Asked Questions” format.
What is a
C-School? Class C-Schools are Short Term Resident
Training. These schools are usually one week or less and are paid for
out of “training” funds. You donate your time and the Coast Guard pays
for the travel costs.
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What
C-Schools can I attend? Auxiliarists are eligible to attend
any C-School provided they meet the course prerequisites and their
training request is approved by the Program Manager for that C-School.
The Chief Director, Office of Auxiliary (G-OCX) is the Program Manager
for the C-Schools that are specifically designated for Auxiliarists.
It is important to note that current policy is that a member may only
attend one C-School per year and that a member may not attend a
C-School if they have previously attended that course as demand for
C-Schools is high. Waiver of policy requirements should be noted on
training requests.
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How do I know
what C-Schools are available? The schedule of C-Schools is
published online at
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/tqc/1540TableofContents.htm. Select
“Auxiliary” from the pull down menu with “Links for Class ‘C’ Schools
CLCVN’s” in the box.
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How do
I apply for a C-School? You fill out a Short-Term Resident
Training Request (STTR). You then route the STTR “up the chain” to the
Director of Auxiliary (DIRAUX) for your District. The specific routing
for the STTR depends on your District/Division. The form is available
online at
http://www.uscgaux.org/~forms/archive/a7059f.pdf STTRs should
reach the DIRAUX no later than 60 days before the class start date.
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If I sign up to go to
a C-School, why is it important for me to attend? Every C-School quota is a valued and trusted investment. The Auxiliary has
been running at a 26% wasted quota rate for the last three years.
These Auxiliary quotas are funded by the Coast Guard at $1500 each.
Each quota wasted by a late cancellation or no show, goes unused and
creates a future funding exposure for the Auxiliary. The Coast
Guard has advised the Auxiliary training leadership that they will
deduct wasted/no show quotas from future allocation funding levels.
That represents a potential loss of over $125,000 annually. We all
need to be aware of this problem and be good stewards of these funds.
All C-School registrations come with an individual responsibility to
make sure each quota is used.
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How do I get my
orders/notification that I am approved to attend the course?
The goal is to issue orders 30 days before the start of a specific
class. Orders are e-mailed directly to the member by Direct Access.
You must have an accurate e-mail address in AUXDATA for this to happen.
The DIRAUX can print out your orders on the “Airport Terminal” and mail
them to you if you do not have a valid email address.
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What about travel
to the C-School? The orders will contain specific information
about travel to the class. You should use the government contracted
travel agency for your district. Your DIRAUX can provide this
information to you. You will need your Travel Order Number (TONO) from
your orders to make government travel arrangements.
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Where do I stay?
Specific berthing arrangements vary from class to class. Information
will be provided in the comments section of your orders.
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Where do I go for
the training? Training locations vary from class to class.
Specific information will be provided in the comments section of your
orders. Most of the time, training will be held at a Coast Guard
Training Center such as the Coast Guard Academy, New London, CT,
Training Center Yorktown, VA, and Training Center Petaluma, CA.
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How do I file a
travel claim? You fill out a form Travel Claim Voucher (Form
DD-1351-2) which can be found at
http://www.uscgaux.org/~forms/archive/dd1351-2f.pdf. Print out the
completed form, sign it, attach copies of receipts for lodging
(required), receipts for items over $75.00, attach your orders, and
forward via the chain of leadership to your DIRAUX.
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How do I
find out the status of my travel claim? You may find out the
status of your travel claim by going to the web site:
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/psc/tvl.htm#tps, or calling (toll free)
Personnel Support Command at 1-866-PSC-USCG (1-866-772-8724).
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How do I find out what I was paid for? A Travel Voucher Summary
(TVS) details what travel expenses you were paid. You may access the
TVS at on the CG Intranet
https://cgweb.fincen.uscg.mil/tvs_aux/.
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How do I get
credit for completing the course? Once you have fulfilled
all the course requirements (some courses have post-attendance
requirements), the lead instructor for the course will forward a class
roster to G-OCX within 30 days of the course completion date. You will
also get a course completion certificate from the lead instructor. It
is your responsibility to forward a copy of that course completion
certificate via the chain of leadership to your DIRAUX for filing in
your personnel file at the DIRAUX.
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What else
should I know? Participation in Auxiliary C-Schools is a
benefit provided to you to assist you in performance of your Auxiliary
duties. However, C-School quotas are valuable and cost on average
$1,000.00 per quota. If you request a C-School and then cancel at the
last minute or do not show up for the class, then that money is wasted
as there are only a limited number of classes scheduled. C-Schools
are intended to give you knowledge and skills to help you perform your
job in the Auxiliary. As such, some “Return-On-Investment” is
expected. In other words, you would be expected to perform in a
particular staff position or function for a period of time after you
completed a C-School associated with that staff position.
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Where
can I get more information? Eventually all C-Schools will
have student support pages that can be accessed through a central
“Learning Portal” at
http://cschool.auxservices.org/. Student support web pages will
be set up for most C-Schools. The link for those classes with support
pages will be provided in the comments section of the orders. Student
support pages for those C-Schools without them will be created soon.
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Summary. Take
advantage of available C-Schools to increase your knowledge and
skills. Plan for them well in advance and submit your requests early.
Completion of C-Schools will benefit you and the Coast Guard.
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