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Air Force Tech Sgt. Jude Baidoo and other LEAP scholars visit Bunce Island, one of more than sixty slave trading forts established in the 1600s on the West African coast. (Courtesy photo)
LEAP Scholars
By Navy Cmdr. Robert Liberato, Boston MEPS Commander | May 31, 2023
With events happening around the world at a moment’s notice, service members must always be ready for the fight. Not unlike the skills built over time by a pilot; the culture, language, and regional expertise the total force needs for critical missions cannot be “just-in-time” trained.

(L) Navy Lt. Cmdr. America Estevez-Guerrero, Tampa MEPS commander, listens intently during a presentation at the USMEPCOM Leadership Conference. The conference brought leaders from all MEPS locations and headquarters together for the first time since 2019.
Leadership Conference Connects USMEPCOM Command Teams
By Derrik Noack | May 15, 2023
At a command where teamwork is imperative and members are spread across 65 locations, conferences are a great tool for unit synergy and building important partnerships. The USMEPCOM Leadership Conference, which brings together Sector, Battalion and MEPS commanders and senior enlisted advisors, returned May 8-12 to Lake Delavan, Wisconsin, after a four-year pause due to the pandemic.

Col. Megan Stallings, USMEPCOM commander, engages with attendees at the 2023 Medical Leadership Training Symposium (MLTS).
Accessions Medical Leadership Come Together for Collaboration and Coordination
By Derrik Noack | May 1, 2023
After a four-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the USMEPCOM Medical Leadership Training Symposium (MLTS) returned, bringing the top command doctors and leadership together for three days of activities and presentations.

(L to R) Col. Megan Stallings, commander, USMEPCOM, Carter Stallings, Air Force recruit, and Chris Stallings, executive director, Naval Service Training Command, pose for a photo at Chicago MEPS moments before Carter ships to Basic Military Training.
Stepson of USMEPCOM Commander Enlists
By Derrik Noack | April 17, 2023
When your father and grandfather were both Army Aviation Officers, and your stepmother is currently an Army colonel, following their legacy seems like an obvious path to pursue. That is, of course, if you aren’t a 22-year-old wanting to forge your very own path. Instead of choosing to “Be All You Can Be” with the Army, Carter Stallings decided to enlist and “Aim High” with the Air Force. Carter is the stepson of Army Col. Megan Stallings, commander, USMEPCOM, and his father is retired Army Col. Chris Stallings (current executive director of Naval Service Training Command). His father was on active duty before he was even born, so Carter grew up on various bases and military communities. From a young age, he favored Airmen wings to the Army’s five-pointed star.

Lt. Cmdr. Iman Parirokh, Chicago MEPS executive officer, leads a group of applicants through the oath of enlistment at Chicago MEPS February 1, 2023.
Working Hard for the Mission: USMEPCOM, Recruiting Partners Working Overtime to Get the Job Done
By Joseph Wax | March 31, 2023
Starting in April, USMEPCOM will reintroduce Saturday processing days at select MEPS around the country.

Dave Foland, administrative support technician, Portland MEPS, (center) is presented with the Western Sector Coin for Excellence by Marine Corps Col. Jesse Sjoberg, USMEPCOM Western Sector commander. Foland was recognized for intervening and disarming a possible active shooter in Troutdale, Ore.
Portland MEPS Technician's Quick Action Disrupts Gunman
By Army Maj. Brian Anderson, Portland MEPS commander | March 14, 2023
It was close to 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 16 and the dinner rush was in full effect at a pub in Troutdale,

CHICAGO (November 4, 2021) Dr. Liza Pilch, a medical provider at Chicago MEPS, conducts a medical evaluation with an applicant in Chicago MEPS medical department. Recent changes to the USMEPCOM Supporting Medical Documentation Review Program (SMDRP) are designed to standardize and streamline the medical pre-screen review and in-person physical evaluation process at MEPS around the country.
SMDRP Update: Streamlining and Standardizing MEPS Medical Processing
By Joseph Wax | Feb. 15, 2023
With hundreds of medical providers of various specialties working at 65 Military Entrance Processing Stations (MEPS) and two Remote Processing Stations across the country, standardizing the medical qualification process for military applicants is a challenge. United States Military Entrance Processing Command (USMEPCOM) took that challenge head on with recent updates to the Supplemental Policy Guidance (SMPG) and Supporting Medical Documentation Review Program (SMDRP).