Great Lakes A School Q&A

Huntersmon how long is he stationed in San Diego?

JoAnn, He is there for 4 years.

we are planning a trip to see him in May..

Yes, but it is usually quite small, short, and at the schoolhouse.  Ask your sailor, the school likes to know if guests will be present.  There are no passes, so without military ID, your sailor will need to escort you.  Some families do like it very much.

MissingMySon

I had not heard that the Sailors get to have leave after A School graduation! How Awesome :)

Usually they get a week to ten days after A school.  Longer schools mean more leave, but if they have a C school, the report date determines how much leave.  They earn 2.5 days each month, so after boot camp they already have earned five days.  And after A school, they can ask the recruiter is they can participate in RAP, recruiter assistance.  They spend some time with the recruiter, doing home visits and speaking at schools, just a few hours each day.  Then they get five days of leave back when the paperwork is done.  

Anti M

Thanks for the speedy reply!

I have opted to not go to GL for A school graduation instead, he has a liberty weekend 2 weeks before he grads, so I booked a trip and hotels in downtown Chicago and we are going to watch the St. Patty's day parade, watch the river get turned green, take a boat ride, go to navy pier and the zoo, I have to return him Sunday at dinner time.  Can't wait !!!!

No, they do not.  If they want to go to Friday church services, that usually can be arranged.  Easter is not a federal holiday.

Can you fill out a chit in phase two to get overnight liberty? Is it likely that it'll be granted? 

An overnight chit is a big maybe at Great Lakes.  It will depend on how the individual sailor is doing, and if anyone messed up and ruined it for the rest of the group.  Also, it will depend on the mood of the COC at the time (chain of command).  

Good morning! 
My daughter left Great Lakes yesterday. She's in Mayport, Florida now. Is there a group for that place I can join? 

@jayjay8503 

She's a GSE. Thanks, so far she said it was nice there. :)

Tati's Mum-what ship will your daughter be on? My son is also a GSE and will be going to Mayport in a couple of weeks.

Tati's Mum, Mine will be on the USS Phillipine Sea :) Good luck to your daughter! Anit M, thank you!

Hello everyone! my daughter was station in san Diego, she's still in A school in  great lakes IL and has about 8 more weeks to go her ship is USS Boxer LDH and I was just wondering if anyone had more info about the ship or if there's any other families with Sailors assigned to the same ship, any information will be greatly appreciated Thanks!

Every carrier, even UPS and Fedex, go through the mail room.  USPS is best.  Remember, someone besides your sailor will be signing for the box, a notice is sent, then they have to go get their package.  Usually they have to open it in front of someone to check for contraband.  

There can be delays, although a week is a bit much.  

I'm beginning to wonder if someone in the mailroom is slacking.  If I'm seeing some complaints here, how many more are there?

I guess you can look at it as practice for when they are deployed and mail takes forever to get to the ship!   

Can anyone tell me exactly what can we bring for the newly graduates for A school.  My daughter packed a suitcase. I am going through it to make sure she has what I think she needs. I'm just not sure how many suitcases can we bring for her if any at all.

Thanks for any help!!!

Ivorysmom, Your daughter can have pretty much whatever she wants, just remember they do not have a lot of room for personal items. TV, computers, Kuregs, etc. are acceptable but they will have to put them in their locker during the day.  The same goes for personal pillows and blankets.  We purchased most of what my son wanted over PIR weekend.  (socks, underwear, towels, a few new civilian clothes in his new sizes),

MsT... You are AWESOME !!

Thank you so very much. I truly appreciate you taking the time to help me.  This entire process has been stressful, and exciting. This helps a lot. Have a Blessed today and tomorrow.   :)

A word about stuff at A school, having been there myself.  If they cannot move it all in one shot by themselves, they have too much stuff.  They certainly cannot have that much stuff on a ship!  Also, it is not unknown to change rooms a couple times.

Yes, most of the time they cannot leave anything out without specific permission.  During a long school, it i easy to acquire a lot of things.  When they leave, some of it gets sold or given to other sailors remaining behind.  But take ti easy on the civilian clothes and the knickknacks and the electronics.  

Dsmom has it pretty much right about orders.  When orders are issued, there will be a report date, with a couple travel days included, and if leave can be taken.  That is when they put in their leave request, and take leave en route to the new command. If they are taking leave along the way and need to fly somewhere else, the travel office arranges that in conjunction with their official travel, and they pay for the one leg themselves. When they finally do report into their new command, they file a travel claim.  As new sailors, they will have someone walk them through the process.

Leave requests are NEVER automatic.  There is always paperwork!

For the RAP, if he's arranged that, it doesn't mean additional leave days, it means he gets credit back for five of his leave days when the recruiter files the paperwork afterward.

The Navy has a good handle on leave and orders, just let them do their thing.  I saw one mom buy a bunch of plane tickets and throw a real wrench into the process.  Ended up being out a big chunk of change.

Gunner's Mate is 27 weeks long, including nine weeks of ATT (electronic prep) to start them off.  No A school is only ten days.  Even the undesignated sailors have three weeks of training.  Are you sure you have his rating correct?

He may just be confused.  Not unusual for new sailors not to have a grasp on the bigger picture.  I can see ten days of hold or indoc for sure.  It takes that long for them to get a grasp on base policies and watch standing, doing their quals and earning liberty phase two.  Maybe he was writing quickly and left a little bit out?

It is possible his rating has changed, but again, nothing I know of is as short as ten days.  

@Missing .. good luck to your son on the test.  Does he have orders?  Somewhere he's excited about, I hope!

Cool!

I was hoping to get some information on living with my husband during his A school.  What are the requirements?  He is graduating BC on April 1, so not sure exactly when he will start A school.  We plan on getting married once he's in A school.

Thanks for any information!

Which A school?  It must be over 20 weeks long to qualify for Live Ashore.  This does not include indoc or hold times, or C schools.  Very few schools at Great Lakes qualify.  The Live Ashore packet takes two weeks to a month to get approved.

To marry during A school, he is supposed to submit a special request chit to let them know he is marrying, and take a class or counsel with a chaplain.  This is in part to screen for fraudulent marriages, to screen for security risks, and so the sailor understands the benefits, rights, and responsibilities of dependents.  

I'm seeing 18 weeks for A school.  Not quite long enough for Live Ashore, he'll need to ask once he checks into his school. What sucks is he'll be there so long.  What you can do if they say no, is move there yourself, and once he gets phase 3, he can spend weekends with you.  So couples find that workable.