FORT WORTH – As the 8th Marine Corps District, its Marine Recruiters, and support staff transition to the new calendar year to tackle new challenges and recruit the next generation of Marines, it is important to reflect on past milestones and endeavors. The 2022 recruiting environment was characterized by a variety of challenges however 8th Marine Corps District and its Marines remained steadfast in mission accomplishment despite the dynamic environment. Some of the challenges recruiters faced included navigating a new medical-screening system known as Medical Review of Authoritative Data (MROAD), leveraging the new military health portal GENESIS, regaining access to schools post-COVID, increased cost of advertising and media services due to inflation, and maneuvering within policies set by Congress.

Enlisted Shipping and Contracting

8th Marine Corps District met its Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 shipping and contracting goals. Eight recruiting stations, 101 recruiting sub-stations, 95 Permanent Contact Stations (PCS), and one Prior Service Recruiting Station (PSR) supported efforts to meet the District’s total force shipping requirement achieving 100.96 percent of its objective. The net new contact attainment percentage for the district was 92.72 percent. This recruiting effort was executed by 515 recruiters on production throughout FY22. Recruiting Station San Antonio achieved RS of Year for 8th Marine Corps District for over shipping.

Marine Officer Procurement

For the FY22 Platoon Leaders Class (PLC), the district achieved 133 percent attainment for applicant submissions. Of those applicants submitted, 69 percent of the applicants were selected and 93 percent of them shipped to Officer Candidate School resulting in 95 percent induction mission attainment.

For the FY22 Officer Candidates Class (OCC), the district achieved 160 percent submission mission attainment. Of those submitted, 58 percent were selected and 96 percent shipped to OCS with 92 percent of those submitted inducted.

To exceed the Western Recruiting Region officer procurement mission with highly qualified Officer Candidates, the District guided Officer Selection Officers (OSO) to aggressively engage in prospecting and recruiting efforts. OSOs leveraged career fairs, school campus visits, LinkedIn digital media engagement, the Marine Corps Flight Orientation Program, Judge Advocate General lawyer Tiger teams, and proof case visits to their Areas of Operation to recruit competitive candidates into the Officer accession programs. In FY22, no Officer Selection Team (OST) in the 8th Marine Corps District missed Superior Achiever due to the Officer Mission.

Changes of Command

On May 17, 2022, Major Jordan A. Eddington assumed command of Recruiting Station Houston. On July 19, 2022, Col. Warren C. Cook Jr. assumed command of the 8th Marine Corps District. On June 1, 2022, Major Jacob C. Crockett assumed command of Recruiting Station San Antonio. On June 14, 2022, Major Michael M. Siani assumed command of Recruiting Station Dallas.

Reliefs and Appointments

On 1 March 2022, Sgt. Maj. Orlando Castillo was appointed as Sergeant Major of Recruiting Station Albuquerque. On 1 April 2022, Sgt. Maj. Anthony Lappe was appointed as Sergeant Major of Recruiting Station Fort Worth. On 1 April 2022, Sgt. Maj. Edward Lemus was appointed as Sergeant Major of Recruiting Station Denver.

Right Place, Right Time

Marines stationed at Recruiting Station Fort Worth responded to a local shooting incident near their offices. They ensured the suspected gunman was identified to law enforcement, and directed emergency response personnel to those injured. Marines stationed at Recruiting Station Salt Lake City also responded to a shooting incident while off-duty at a restaurant and reported details of the shooting to local authorities.

Top Performing Recruiters

SSgt Robert Louis Simms III of Abingdon, Maryland wrote over 100 enlisted contracts during his tour at Recruiting Station Dallas. This feat was a reflection employing systematic recruiting processes. With an Average Production per Recruiter (APR) of 2.33, 100% of his contracts were Tier 1 education category, and 72% of his contract were CAT I-III Alphas. Col. Cook Jr. and Maj. Siani recognized the Marine for his superior performance with the Centurion Award, which recognizes Marines who achieve 100-contracts during their tour.

Community Relationships

Between April and May, the 8th Marine Corps District supported two Omega Psi Phi fraternity events. The Dallas event featured Maj. Gen. Craig Timberlake (ret.) as a guest speaker and the Las Vegas event featured Dallas and Houston recruiting station commanding officers. In December, Marines, and poolees from Recruiting Station Dallas and Fort Worth participated in the annual Armed Forces Bowl for a joint swear-in ceremony at Fort Worth’s Texas Christian University. Throughout the year, recruiting stations conducted annual pool functions to build camaraderie, and prepare young men and women to be mentally and physically prepared for boot camp. Further, recruiters continued to leverage high school class talks, sports partnerships, and local media to better integrate with their community.

Marketing

Throughout FY22, Marines conducted 474 events throughout 8th District’s area of operations. These events included 96 career fairs, 120 sporting events, and six music events. The District Mobile Marketing Team deployed across the southwest with a branded tractor and trailer to support 14 events bringing the Marine Corps experience to audiences at concerts, state fairs, and NASCAR races. 8th Marine Corps District also leveraged a new system known as Battle Position at three events. Battle Position is a virtual pugil stick video game that allows guests to play in a virtual arena using virtual reality technology.

High School Influencer Outreach

Every year, recruiting stations invite their local teachers, band directors, and coaches to five workshops to learn about the Marine Corps directly from Marines. The San Diego and Quantico educator-focused workshops are a week-long exposure to the Marine Corps. Guests conduct team building exercises as well as Marine-led physical training, and learn marksmanship skills at a shooting range. Recruiting stations also invited local media personnel who shared their experience at the workshop with local audiences.

Re-statement for Fiscal Year 2023

On October 6, 2022, Col. Cook Jr. and support staff briefed Brig. Gen. Morris, the Western Recruiting Region Commanding General, on the state of the district and ways forward for ensuring mission success throughout FY23. He briefed using an art and science approach to tackling the challenges. On the science front, he intends to leverage technology to create efficiencies. On the art front, he wants to sustain the district’s top talent to create a compounding effect throughout the ranks of recruiters.

Retirements of Recruiting Subject Matter Experts

8th Marine Corps District had the privilege of retiring three 8412 Career Recruiters in 2022. Master Gunnery Sgt. Andrew C. Korous served as the district training team chief as his final duty assignment. Master Gunnery Sgt. Arnulfo Leal served as the Recruiting Station Houston Recruiter Instructor as his final duty assignment. Master Gunnery Sgt. Sherwin Hall served as the Recruiting Station Denver Recruiter Instructor as his final duty assignment. Combined, they have over 80 years of service, over half of which was in support of recruiting and training the next generation of recruiters. Their service and contribution to the Marine Corps and recruiting will be felt long beyond their time in uniform.