CPPD Hosts Virginia Secretary of Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security

By Susan Henson, Center for Personal and Professional Development Public Affairs

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (NNS) -- Virginia's secretary of Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security visited the Center for Personal and Professional Development Aug. 9.

Terrie Suit met with CPPD leadership and toured the command to gain an understanding of CPPD's role in developing Sailors who think critically, act responsibly and lead proactively.

The tour included a stop at the Virtual Education Center (VEC) for a brief on the center's capabilities and education services it provides to Sailors worldwide.

Suit was appointed as assistant to the governor for commonwealth preparedness in January 2010 by Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell. The Commonwealth reorganized some positions the following year, which resulted in Suit appointment

"It is a great honor to host such a distinguished visitor at CPPD," said CPPD Commanding Officer Capt. John Newcomer. "Secretary Suit's visit is a great opportunity to explain our work to provide Sailors the tools they need to lead with courage, respect and trust, and mentor future leaders to do the same. Part of that development is through voluntary education, and the VEC's work is essential to assisting Sailors navigate through the waters of completing higher education requirements for a degree."

The daughter of a career U.S. Army officer and wife of a now-retired Navy senior chief, Suit is familiar with the demands of military life and related challenges of earning a college degree. She has earned an Associate degree from Tidewater Community College and Bachelor's degree in political science from Old Dominion University.

Suit's tour included stops at the Training directorate, which creates, maintains and has oversight for personal and professional course curricula; the Voluntary Education (VOLED) directorate, which is responsible for the Navy's VOLED program; and VOLED's Virtual Education Center (VEC), which provides virtual education assistance and counseling to Sailors and veterans.

Julie Gifford, regional military liaison, accompanied her the tour of CPPD.

At the end of her visit, Suit said she was excited to see the progress of the Navy College Program.

"Governor McDonnell wants to ensure Virginia is supporting our service members as they pursue education and professional development for their Navy career as well as their eventual transition to civilian life," she said. "Julie and I will be proactively identifying future opportunities for Virginia to work together in support of Navy College and the Center for Personal and Professional Development. Thank you for all that you are doing here."

In addition to VOLED, CPPD is responsible for providing a wide range of personal and professional development courses and materials, including General Military Training, Navy instructor training, alcohol and drug awareness program training, suicide prevention, Bearings classes, and Personal Responsibility and Values Education and Training (PREVENT) classes. CPPD's leadership training is delivered multiple times throughout a Sailor's career via command-delivered enlisted leadership training material and officer leadership courses in a schoolhouse setting.