Now Your Sailor is at Dam Neck

[Mary (Chris' mom)]

With the N4M website growing in popularity and new billets being added to the IS program we have seen a substantial increase in the number of new members to the IS group. Welcome all of you. We have found ourselves over the past few months answering some of the same questions many times. It is wonderful that families are so involved with and supportive of their sailors, and want to know so much about what they face as they go from Seaman Recruit (SR) at boot camp, to SA (Seaman Apprentice) at Dam Neck, to IS as they exit school.
I hope in this discussion area questions about A school, C school, the Dam Neck Annex, and the Virginia Beach area can be addressed. Let me remind everyone that in the Navy there are basic rules of thumb. First, hurry up and wait...they ask you to hurry so you can sit around and wait. Second, nothing is etched in stone...base commanders change, instructors change, equipment and technology change, rules change, and orders change; that's what the Navy and our National Security need at that given time. Third, please understand that we all have come to this website for support, comfort, friendship and answers; we can not answer things we do not know or that should not be put on the internet.

Please remember that these things are subject to change:

At the time of this posting, when your sailor leaves boot camp if you can meet them at the airport, they will be allowed to bring a cell phone, a laptop, and a small personal music device (iPod or similar). You do not have to face the "kid in a box" again. Although your sailor will have a lot more freedom at Dam Neck, the first several days are busy (actually all their days are) with getting processed into the school, going to medicals to hand them their medical records, finding their way around, and in the meantime being active sailors. They will be put on a duty section where the sailor must remain at the barracks except to go to the school building, get something to eat, or if scheduled for an appointment. I have been told that duty is every fourth day now. If they are on duty, they will be assigned duties to perform, if their duty section leader assesses them and feels that they are not performing up to standard their duties may be reassigned. They may also have to stand watches.
Also, if you were not able to attend PIR or spend time with your sailor after graduation, be aware there is a strict rule that while they are out in uniform they cannot be walking and on the cell phone at the same time. Since they march in formation to and from the barracks and school that cuts into time as well. They will do PT (Physical Training) several times a week, either before getting ready for school or in the afternoons after classes. They must keep their rooms in ship shape because they do get inspected. They do their own laundry and do general cleaning around the outside of the barracks. Do not expect them to answer the phone every time you call just because they are on hold, waiting to class up. They are still kept busy.

Dam Neck is a small base just south of the main Virginia Beach. It has it's own beach as well. The MWR (Morale, Wellness, and Recreation) building has a bank of computers where your sailor can send emails or go online. They also have a projection TV, a room with gaming consoles, a small theater (there is a larger IMAX theater at Oceana, NAS), a coin operated laundry room, pool tables, lounging area, and a very helpful staff. There is a small NEX store (a larger NEX mall at Oceana), and a Chapel which has 2 or 3 services on Sundays, maybe Saturdays as well. There are I believe, 3 softball fields, a track, a walking/running path, tennis courts, and I think I remember some outdoor basketball courts. For those of legal age there is an enlisted club as well I think. A sailor is considered "legal age" on base if he/she is of legal age in his/her home state, is the way I understood it.

Phasing up: The first week at Dam Neck your sailor basically has no liberties. Once they arrive at Dam Neck though they can call, text, email the address to you and you can ship clothing, any small electronics they did not take with them, and some food stuffs. Your sailor will be told to send any parcels certified. I can tell you as other moms can too that what they mean is ship it insured. Certified is for documents and letters. If you send it USPS-insured, it will get sent to the NEX for pick up. If it is not insured, only the minimum postage paid on it, the parcel will be sent to the school building and security will have to have your sailor name off all the items that are in the parcel. Believe me Chris and I had to go through that and if there is food stuff in an uninsured parcel, they give the sailor a big frown. :( They do not like food at the school.

POVs (Personally Owned Vehicles) :
When Chris phased up to being allowed his car on base we checked with Fleet and Family Services at Oceana and they gave us the hours of operation for the Pass and ID office at Oceana. To bring the vehicle on base (or even one visiting on base) a pass must be issued for the vehicle. If it is during the weekend and you are simply visiting, those passes can be issued at the gate but ONLY if the Pass and ID office is closed. Otherwise ALL vehicles must go to the Pass and ID Office. A couple of moms have posted more current information about vehicle registration below. (Sorry I'm having trouble making my Admin tools work properly, or I would paste the links here)

After approximately 6 weeks at Dam Neck your sailor will be phased up to full liberties where he/she can leave when their liberty begins on Friday and remain off base until Sunday night. All liberties are considered a privilege that can be recalled at anytime the Navy decides they need your sailor more. Also if they are scheduled for duty over the weekend they will either have to swap with someone in advance or they will have to remain at barracks during that 24 hours. Plan visits accordingly.

Visits: You may go to Dam Neck and visit your sailor. There are many places available in the Virginia Beach area. They vary in prices, availability, services, etc just like anywhere else. I stayed at the Navy Lodge right there on the Annex and found it very nice. The room was clean, there was a small kitchenette, and more than enough towels. There was also a small play area for younger kids, charcoal grills out back and picnic tables. It was just about a slow five minute drive over to the barracks so Chris was able to leave the room just before midnight and be checked in, in time. He came back over early the next morning. If you are out and about on the base (the MWR, riding around, the NEX, etc) your escort (sailor) must remain with you. Except for traveling directly to and from the Navy Lodge they should be in the car with you also.

School: The school hours and days may vary by holidays, mandatory medicals, Instructor's meetings and things of that nature. Most of the time school begins at 8:00am and runs til lunch break, they march back then to barracks or the galley, have their meal and then march back for the after noon session. On some Fridays they may be excused around lunch time, and those not on duty can usually begin their liberty if they have earned it.
Both A school and C school are very competitive and demand a lot of study time. If a sailor fails a unit they can sometimes retake the test but they will be put on mando (mandatory study time), or they may be put on hold and have to be dropped from that class and wait until another class makes it to that unit. It is not unusual for students to go back to the schoolhouse after evening meal and study until, 9:00, 10:00 or even later at night.
A school is 13 weeks long. it is a general over view of Intelligence specialties and whatever else they learn. (Who knows?) C School is job specific. Near the end of a school a sailor has the opportunity to make his/her "dream assignment" known. The Navy will then release a pool of job openings by the specialty and/or location of the job. The highest ranking student in the class (highest grade average) is allowed to choose first. The second highest gets to choose second and so on. These are only preliminary choices that may be changed later. That happened to my son. He picked DC and the instructors began talking to him about the area and 3 weeks into C school his orders were changed to go overseas. Again, nothing is etched in stone.
Depending on the specialty that the sailor trains in during C school determines the number of weeks that his/her C school will last. One specialty school lasts about 6 weeks, another I believe, lasts about 15 weeks, and then Strike and a couple of other more classified areas train for I think about 8-12 weeks. Those, I am not as sure about since my son starts shutting up on some of it and there is not so much info out there on those couple of specialties. Everything in IS is a "need to know basis" and that's stuff I don't need to know. There is more info on all this in Ellen's discussion about the IS rating in general.

When a sailor completes A school there is a very brief and very informal graduation for them. I understand that when C school is completed the "ceremony" lasts a little longer but still informal. I understand that family may attend. I will post more about this after I attend my son's graduation soon.

The one thing I can tell you is that I asked a few moms whose kids were already out in the field and they have all said that their sailors like what they do. It is a field that is vital to our security and gives them a wonderful background for other jobs after coming out of military service. Please tell your sailors thank you for their service and congratulations, they've earned it.

It sounds as though there are a lot of negatives here but it not really so bad and there is free time. It’s just better to be aware that they are still in the Navy and are basically on the job 24/7. Will post more later about the VB area.

[christina_209]

HI Mary,
Thanks for all this information. I look foreward to reading more. My son is in GL and after BC will be in Virginia. I won't be able to make his graduation from BC but am looking forward to the graduation from Aschool.

[Mary (Chris' mom)]

Christina,
I am so sorry you will have to miss PIR. Believe me, our kids understand it better than we do and will have wonderful memories of the weekend anyway. A school graduation is not a big deal either except that they have gone through 13 weeks of mental and psychological preparation. While PIR made parents weep with pride, I believe I was just as moved to attend Chris' C school graduation knowing a little of the intense work he had done to make it through. You will enjoy the time after graduation also since he won't have to return to barracks early in the evening (unless he has duty) like they have to the weekend of PIR. Enjoy your time with him and we look forward to hearing more from you.
Welcome to the group!
Navy Hugs,
Mary

[denise_74]

Hello everyone! I am brand new to this, my son arrived yesterday to Dam Neck. There is so much information on here, I do not know where to start! Please help me out, helpful tips, where to begin, anything! PIR was amazing & I am so grateful I was able to attend & spend the weekend with my son. I live fairly close so I will be able to visit him frequently, I just don't know when my first visit will be able to happen with all the new rules for him. Any help will be greatly appreciated!

[Mary (Chris' mom)]

denise,
Congratulations for having a sailor in the best job the Navy offers (at least that's our opinions, haha). We have tried to squeeze in a lot of info. The rules do change every once in a while regarding liberties and phasing up but your sailor likely has a roommate or will quickly make friends with another sailor who has been there a couple weeks to a couple months. They all try to help each other adjust and do well. If your son does all he is supposed to do (muster on time, odd jobs asked to do, and keep a clean room, etc.) within a couple of weeks he will be able to have some time off to leave base but with restrictions at night. After being there around 5-6 weeks he will phase up completely and if he does not have duty or a hard unit to study for, he can be off base overnight. Don't worry about keeping up with his phases...they tend to know exactly how long before they phase up again, lol...He can have some personal items now (laptop, iPod, cell phone) to avoid shipping many boxes, I would go ahead and fill in with a favorite pair of jeans, a couple of shirts, maybe a favorite pair of shoes. He may not be able to wear them just yet, but by the time he gets them he will be about ready to phase up to that level. Be sure to use the military boxes from the Post Office and a packing slip that details the items in the box, send it insured, and he should get it all with no problems. He will tell you send it certified, technically that's for letters and documents...asked for insured (the parcel term). Have him to ask another IS sailor or someone at the NEX for the address.
Take your time reading the information, and since the info is more than a year old now, double check everything and only consider it a general guide. If things have changed, please let us know and we will update as soon as possible. Thank your son for his service and Anchors Aweigh!
Navy Hugs!

[denise_74]

Mary,
Thanks so much for your reply! I agree, this rate is the best the Navy has to offer ;-)
I will checking in & reading all of the information, I really appreciate this site & all the members like you :-)
Thanks again!

[Sharon]

Thanks so much for all this info.  No one in my son's graduating group from BC was going to Dam Neck and it's been discouraging trying to find out what to expect.  

My son reports today to start A School.  He thought training was for 24 weeks -- maybe that's the combo of A school and C school?  

I guess we'll find out soon enough.  I'm hoping to get down to VA Beach in February to see him on his birthday weekend.  I'll look into the hoop jumping involved to get into the Navy Lodge, but perhaps February rates at local VA Beach hotels will be reasonable enough!

[Mary (Chris' mom)]

Rates in Feb are good...not a lot of hoop jumping for Navy Lodge. You simply call them, make all the arrangements and then when you arrive your sailor must escort you from the entry gate to the Lodge and check you in. We had a wonderful stay there and took a pot of homemade chili with us (one of Chris' favorites), met some friends who were doing the polar plunge at the beach, and all went to the room where we heated the chili, made rice, and ate dinner. The staff was extremely nice, the room was acceptable, and that night we saw the deer between the Lodge and the pond feeding.

A  school was 13 weeks, it varies greatly according hold times and the C school they choose. Some folks jump straight from A school graduation on Friday to C school on Monday. Then I have heard of some who wait a few months for their C school to begin. That is something you cannot predict until the end of A school. OPINTEL C school is 5 weeks some of the other C schools range from I think 9 weeks to 15 weeks. 

[Sharon]

how long is imagery?

[Mary (Chris' mom)]

Sharon I don't remember for sure but it is one of the longer ones, (my sailor just walked in, he says either 13 or 16 weeks).

[Devon]

hi, thank you for all of the info posted here--it is helpful :)

my husband is in bot camp now, PIR may 6th and i will not be able to attend grad :( (we have 3 children, one is just 4 months)  anyway, another wife told me i would be able to go to dam neck that same weekend and see my husband--is that true?  thx

[Mary (Chris' mom)]

Hmm..not sure about that. You might need to contact his command (the school), Family and Fleet Services at Oceania might be able to tell you, or a least talk to your husband when you get that wonderful call " We passed BS21, I'm officially a sailor!". Many sailors don't leave until Sunday. They are at the airport at 5 or 6am to catch their plane sometime during the day, and then arrive at their school later in the day. I honestly do not know about visitors to the sailors until they phase up. With the changes that I have heard about lately, (and I'm sure a few I have not heard about) I would not want to give you false hope, nor discourage you from trying. 

Chris arrived at the school around 4:30 or 5:00pm and although he had some "free" time, most of that was spent finding out his assigned room and roommate, going to the galley to get dinner, making some phone calls (I gave him his cell phone that morning at the airport), getting his seabag unpacked and room ready for inspection, finding out his duty shift and who to report to, etc. Then the following days he spent either on duty, checking things out around the base, going to medicals, etc. You may opt to wait about 2 weeks when he can go off base with you for a few hours but it depends on how far you live from there as to how often you can go and how long you need to stay to make it worth the drive and time. 

[Mom2aSailor]

My daughter's PIR is 5/6 also, she is also IS.. what div. is your hubby in?  Sorry you can't make it to graduation! :(  If you let me know what div. he is in, I'll try and take pics of him for you!! :)
Jenn