CADET AND MENTOR INFORMATION The documents below contain valuable information for mentors and student particpants.  Please consult these documents prior to the MCC.

Cadet and Midshipmen Welcome Letter

2013 Mentor Admin Letter

USMA Map

DD1351-2 Travel Voucher

GEN Franks MCC Mentor Welcome

MCC Framework

Mentor Preparation Instructions

MISSION COMMAND DOCTRINE The links below are documents contain the doctrinal statements and current research on Mission Command and will be referenced during the conference. 

CJCS MC White Paper

CSA AUSA Speech on Mission Command

ADP 6-0 Mission Command

ADRP 6-0 Mission Command

CC-ARMY Misson Command

Mission Command Op Ed by COL Tony Burgess

Greetings from West Point!

On behalf of the United States Military Academy and the Simon Center for the Professional Military Ethic (SCPME), thank you for your participation as a Mentor for the 2013 Mission Command Conference (MCC) which will take place at the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, New York on 21-24 April.  The 21^st and 24^th are designated travel days. 

 We are excited about your participation in the USMA Mission Command Conference (MCC) with the United States Military Academy’s Class of 2013.  This information is provided to make your travel and reception for the Mission Command Conference a successful one.

 Travel and Funding:

USMA will fund all travel and lodging for leaders and facilitate each installation’s travel orders.  Because this conference is funded through the generous donations from the West Point graduate community, there are specific protocols that must be followed regarding the procedures for official travel (i.e., all travel must be coordinated through the West Point Carlson-Wagonlit office).  It is critical that you and your fellow Mentors follow the instructions in Appendix A in order to finalize your travel arrangements no later than 08 April 2013.  Failure to meet this deadline could result in loss of available airline ticketing and lodging.  West Point will fund airfare, specified car rentals, lodging at The Five-Star Inn, and per diem.  Please understand that as good stewards in this new, financially conservative environment, we must adhere to limiting car rentals to one per group of four Mentors (or 12-passenger vans) and will be assigning double to triple occupancy rooms for all Mentors, with the exception of O-5, E-9, and gender considerations.  These guidelines are further explained in Appendix A.  According to the Joint Travel Regulation (Vol. 2), please ensure that all service members should have (or have applied for) a Government Travel Card in order to facilitate travel coordination.

 Background:

This April marks the 16th Annual USMA Mission Command Conference (formerly Battle Command Conference), West Point’s preeminent capstone conference for USMA Seniors, focused on contemporary Mission Command.  Approximately 75 recently deployed Officers and NCOs from 14 Brigade-level CONUS Army and Marine units will pair up to serve as Class of 2013 Mentors to each Cadet Company.  Additionally, 108 ROTC Seniors from 95 different ROTC programs across the U.S. will also take part in the Conference, as well as 20 graduating USMA Midshipmen who are to be commissioned as Marines.  Conference activities include small group facilitated discussions focused on operational adaptability and leading in a period of transitioning military roles, as well as leader panels focused on planning/executing world class training and the NCO-Officer relationship.  We ask for MCC Mentors to share their combat experiences with the students and address expectations of junior officers through a series of facilitated discussions and seminars during a day completely dedicated to this conference.  The keynote speaker for this year’s conference is LTG Daniel B. Allyn, CG, XVIII Airborne Corps.  The end-state is that soon-to-be commissioned Cadets and Midshipmen are excited to become officers, are focused on their commissioning and their future responsibilities, and are prepared to execute mission command while serving selflessly with character and honor.  We’ve attached an agenda for the conference in Appendix B and a highlighted event West Point map in Appendix C for your review and familiarization.

Uniform:

The uniform for all attendees (Mentors, Cadets, Midshipmen) for the entire conference will be the ACU (Army Combat Uniform) or equivalent for our sister services.

Meals: 

Lunch and Dinner will be provided on both 24 and 25 April, however, Breakfast is at the discretion of the mentor (special Per Diem is authorized for this).  The Five Star Inn and the Holiday Inn provide complimentary breakfast, and the Hotel Thayer was a full breakfast menu for purchase in its restaurant.  Additionally, in Highland Falls there is a McDonalds (right outside Thayer Gate), Dunkin Donuts(184 Main St.), and Andy’s Restaurant (281 Main St) that serve breakfast.

Driving around West Point & primary parking location for the conference:

The primary method of travel in and around West Point and to the Conference location is your rental vehicle.  It is possible to use the West Point on-post public bus schedule (for those close enough to garrison), but the service only runs through each location every 30 minutes and the service only runs till 1645 hours. 

Designated Parking Area.  Parking around West Point close to “The Plain”, or Parade Field, is not authorized during the week unless you have a special decal, and parking is also crowded in general.  However, there is a designated Conference parking at the North Dock Parking lot, which is located adjacent to a Helipad right along the banks of the Hudson River, as shown on the map in Appendix C.  Getting to this lot:  After driving through Thayer Gate, it is best to take an immediate left onto Mills Rd, going straight up a hill to the Football Stadium.  You will come to a T-intersection.  Take a right turn onto Stony Lonesome Rd and proceed down a steep hill to another T-intersection.  Take another right turn onto Washington Rd.  Next take the first left onto Ruger Rd (Parade Field on your Right) going down another hill and take an immediate right onto Howard Rd.  Howard Road will take you down a steep hill all the way to the banks of the Hudson River.  You will see a Helipad near the water and a large parking lot to its left – the designated area.  Once parked, walk up the hill towards Eisenhower Hall, a very large red brick building (see map in Appendix C).  The road curves around and you will see the road go through a tunnel literally under Ike Hall.  Walk into the tunnel and you will see an entrance on the left hand side.  Take the stairwell or elevator to the level of the Theater.  NOTE:  DO NOT park in the lot designated as the main parking lot right next to Ike Hall just off Ruger Rd – this is not authorized.

Other points of contact include:

-  CPT Graham Davidson (Michael.davidson@usma.edu) or 845-938-3280

-  2LT Frank Ceva (Frank.ceva@usma.edu) or 845-938-3028

-  LTC Eric Weis (eric.weis@usma.edu) or 845-938-8755