Four Thomas Jefferson School of Law alumni have been attending the Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School (TJAGLCS) in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Sarah Green '12 and Rachel Bauer '10 are part of the Judge Advocate Officer Basic Course. It has three phases; the first two weeks are spent in-processing at Ft. Lee, Virginia. Meantime, Michael Flemming '08 and Hallie Tremaine Balkin '10 were recently at the JAG school in Charlottesville taking a short Fiscal Law course. Both Flemming and Balkin are Department of Defense civilian employees.
It was like a mini-reunion of TJSL alumni!
"It was great to see three other TJSL alumni here at TJAGLCS,” said Sarah Green. “It is such a prestigious place to be able to attend, whether for a short course, or for the Judge Advocate Officer Basic Course. I thought it was also a perfect example of how TJSL alumni are excelling after graduation, and that some are also doing their part to serve our country, either as civilians or service members!"
The second phase of Green and Bauer’s training is at TJAGLCS in Charlottesville. They will be there from February 22 - May 2 and it is basically the military law school phase. They participate in Physical Training (Army workouts) three days a week in the mornings from 6:30-7:30 a.m. and then spend five days a week in the classroom learning about military law. The days are usually from around 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and cover topics like Administrative Law, Fiscal Law, Criminal Law, International and Operational Law, among others.
The last phase is called the Direct Commissionee Course (DCC) and takes place from May 3 - June 14 at Ft. Benning, GA. That phase focuses mostly on the basic soldier type skills that an officer should have- like land navigation (navigating using a map and compass), marksmanship (on a handgun as well as rifle), and tactical operations in the field.
Bauer will be a Reservist Judge Advocate. Once training finishes, she will work in Trial Defense Services with her Reserves unit in Virginia. This means she will be a Defense Attorney within the Reserve component of the U.S. Army, for one weekend a month and two weeks a year.
Green is an Active Duty Judge Advocate, so once training finishes, she and her husband will be moving to Fort Riley, Kansas. She will work in the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate for the 1st Infantry Division, where she’ll be stationed for the next couple of years.
“It's been an amazing few weeks so far- we're very busy but loving every minute of it,” says Green. “We were recently told this past week that for every seat in our class, there were 14 applicants. It's a huge accomplishment for us to have been selected for the JAG Corps and we are both really proud and honored to have the opportunity to be here.”
