SPECIAL STAFF ASSISTANCE VISIT REPORT ON THE CLIMATE, TRAINING ENVIRONMENT, CULTURE AND REGULAR OFFICER TRAINING PLAN (ROTP) PROGRAMME AT THE ROYAL MILITARY COLLEGE OF CANADA - KINGSTON Authors: G.R. Maddison, D.G. Neasmith, BGen V.C. Tattersall, Col A.M.C. Bouchard, LCol M.J. Dow, LCol A.J Gauthier, CWO C.A. Halpin, CWO C.J. Thibault Prepared for and Ordered by: General J.H. Vance Chief of the Defence Staff 10 March 2017 © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of National Defence, 2017 © Sa Majesté la Reine du chef du Canada, représentée par le ministre de la Défense nationale, 2017 2017 SSAV Report on the Climate, Training Environment, Culture and ROTP Programme at the Royal Military College of Canada – Kingston Prologue The Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) is a unique national institution of considerable value to the country and its citizens. For over 140 years the graduates of the College have not only distinguished themselves as individuals, they have also made profound contributions in a wide range of endeavours that permeate throughout Canada and International society to this day. These contributions result from being astronauts, academics, successful business and corporate leaders, and noteworthy elected officials to name a few - the vigorous and ethical leadership exhibited by graduates of RMC over the past century and a half have indeed been out of proportion to the size of the College and their achievements have been simply extraordinary. It was this as background that all of the RMC Special Staff Assistance Visit (SSAV) Team members felt an overriding importance to uncover the legitimate and accurate foundation of reality of the existing culture experienced by the young Naval and Officer Cadets (N/OCdts) at RMC today. Specifically, the SSAV Team examined areas relating to Command and Control, the Selection and Responsibilities of Staff and N/OCdts, Stressors, Morale, Support available and the College Four Pillars of Academics, Physical Fitness, Bilingualism and Military Leadership. To achieve this, the SSAV Team spent five weeks in Kingston, Ontario conducting extensive interviews with N/OCdts, RMC staff and other key stakeholders that included former N/OCdts, graduates and parents and members of the College’s superior headquarters and other organizations. Interviews were subsequently conducted in other venues including Ottawa, Toronto and St-Jean, Quebec. The SSAV Team also received extensive input from graduates of RMC and others via e-mail submissions. In every case, the SSAV Team expressed its appreciation for the information and integrity of thought that went into these submissions and assured those providing information, most of which was deeply personal and reflective, that the information would be treated with respect and in accordance with the Privacy Act. Interviewees were also assured that this Report would be written such that their anonymity would be protected. In doing so, the SSAV Team worked hard at establishing an environment of trust, confidence and anonymity so that people felt comfortable in communicating openly with the Team. This resulted in the SSAV Team interviewing 412 people including 209 N/OCdts, across all academic years and programmes; and being in receipt of over 70 e-mail submissions. During this process, the SSAV Team encountered female and male N/OCdts who were simply outstanding individuals in how they carried and presented themselves, as well as the mature, thoughtful and articulate way in which they expressed their views and concerns. The SSAV Team took away from these encounters that the environment at RMC is indeed one that can produce and develop positive character traits including truth, duty, valour, integrity and honesty. i 2017 SSAV Report on the Climate, Training Environment, Culture and ROTP Programme at the Royal Military College of Canada – Kingston This was an uplifting experience as these young men and women will soon be commissioned officers and will have the responsibility, as junior leaders, for the success of any assigned mission and for the welfare of all those they will lead. Nevertheless, the SSAV Team did discover and identify a number of issues that need immediate and focused attention to achieve important improvements to the RMC programme and structures. This is to ensure that the education and training experience continues to evolve so that the N/OCdts’ experiences while at RMC remain both challenging and positive to the benefit of the individual and to the benefit of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) upon graduation. On the single occasion on which allegations of service offences were brought to the attention of the SSAV Team in the course of an interview and had yet to be communicated to the appropriate authorities, the SSAV Team brought those allegations to the attention of the RMC Chain of Command for their action. To enable us to determine an accurate picture of the RMC tapestry of N/OCdt life and training, the SSAV Team is grateful for the high quality of support and engagement the Team received from the various components resident in the RMC peninsula not the least of whom were the Cadet Wing Commander and the entire Cadet Wing, the Canadian Defence Academy, the Commandant and all his staff, the Training Wing, the Principal and the entire Academic Wing, all the Personnel Support Programme (PSP) staff including those in the Athletic Department, and all the Support Staff. It is with this as a backdrop that the details of this report now follow. ii 2017 SSAV Report on the Climate, Training Environment, Culture and ROTP Programme at the Royal Military College of Canada – Kingston Executive Summary The Special Staff Assistance Visit (SSAV) Team was mandated to assess the overall climate, training environment, culture, and Regular Officer Training Plan (ROTP) programme construct at the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC), and how these factors impact the morale, welfare and success of the Naval and Officer Cadets (N/OCdts) at the College. As the institution responsible for developing these future military leaders, RMC must provide a positive and healthy learning environment for N/OCdts to ensure they have a solid grounding, both academically and militarily. It was with growing concern over the climate at the College that the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) directed a SSAV, a unique tool used by the senior leadership of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) to obtain an understanding of the state of a unit or function. In that regard, the SSAV Team, supported by a civilian and academic advisor, Dr. Phil Bates, RMC Vice-Principal Academic, endeavoured to conduct a thorough assessment, the results of which form the basis of the analysis and recommendations contained in this report. RMC is a unit of the CAF facing challenges similar to those faced by any other military unit across Canada, including aging infrastructure, resource pressures, lengthy and complex processes mandated throughout the Government of Canada relating to administration, financial expenditures, information technology, and ongoing challenges in staffing both civilian and military positions. However, with the mandate to deliver university level academic programmes in addition to military training and education, RMC is unique amongst other CAF units operating in this complex environment. The SSAV Team interviewed and received input from more than 400 stakeholders including the leadership and staff from Canadian Defence Academy / Military Personnel Generation headquarters, RMC military, academic, and support staff and most importantly, more than 200 of the N/OCdts themselves. The Team’s open and consultative approach allowed for valuable and frank insight into the challenges and constraints, the positive and negative views and opinions, and the strengths and weaknesses of the training and learning environment at RMC. This aided the SSAV Team in reaching a solid consensus regarding the assessments and recommendations that the Team believes are needed to address the challenges they observed. In broad terms, the overall climate at RMC has been influenced by a decade of resource pressures and higher priorities at the strategic level, which has resulted in RMC operating in an environment that has generally placed a lower degree of priority on the College. In that regard, the SSAV Team noted uncertainty amongst stakeholders regarding RMC’s mission and priorities, a significant level of tension between the Academic and Training Wings, N/OCdts who are cynical about their experience at RMC, and disconnects between how RMC employs more traditional learning and military training techniques, and the expectations of a new generation of tech-savvy and multi-tasking N/OCdts. This report provides assessments and recommendations in five areas: (1) RMC’s Command and Control and Governance Framework; (2) Stressors affecting the N/OCdts; (3) Morale at the College; (4) Selection process and training of the military staff; (5) Support programmes iii 2017 SSAV Report on the Climate, Training Environment, Culture and ROTP Programme at the Royal Military College of Canada – Kingston available to the N/OCdts; and (6) The Four Pillars programme where N/Cdts are required to meet established standards in four key areas considered germane to service as an officer in the CAF: academics, military training, physical fitness, and bilingualism (French and English). RMC’s Command and Control and Governance Framework This area concerned the various Regulations, Directives and Orders affecting RMC as a unit of the CAF, and the governance framework that supports the academic programme. The Team found that many of the governance framework instruments are out of date and in need of review. The Team observed that the Cadet Wing Instructions, which are orders applicable to the day-to- day activities of N/OCdts, are overly restrictive and limit N/OCdts in the Cadet Chain of Authority in learning how to exercise sound judgement as developing leaders. Accordingly, these instructions would also benefit from a review.