MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT SAN DIEGO --
High school administrators, teachers, counselors from Recruiting Stations San Diego and Los Angeles experienced a week-long synopsis of Marine Corps recruit training during the Educators Workshop Monday through today.
The educator’s first step in their simulated transformation to becoming Marines began with their arrival on the depot.
As the buses came to a halt in front of the infamous yellow footprints, drill instructors overwhelmed the vehicles and the unsuspecting passengers making their intimidating presence known.
After yelling for the educators to exit the bus and line up on the yellow footprints with speed and intensity, the drill instructors paced up and down the rows barking orders and ensuring the educators got into the proper position of attention. After several minutes of controlled chaos, the drill instructors stop their yelling and take a moment to congratulate the educators because they have survived the first two minutes of Marine Corps Recruit Training. The educators are then taken on a tour of the rest of the receiving process by their drill instructor guides.
“Today has been awesome,” said Leiha Dulawan, Career Planner, Dos Pueblos High School, Santa Barbra, Calif. “It was a little hard to understand the drill instructors but it’s been a lot of fun, I’ve learned a lot.”
The educators attended classroom briefs describing the entire enlistment process, including recruiting, joining the Marine Corps, boot camp graduation, the Fleet Marine Force, and Marines’ lifestyles.
“If any of my students wanted to join I would tell them to weigh the options, but I would definitely call our recruiter to help them make a choice,” said Dulawan.
They continued touring many training sites around the depot. They watched demonstrations of water survival training at the depot Swim Tank; Marines tackle the confidence course; and even received a class and some brief hands-on training with the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program.
“Something that I’ve noticed (about the Marines) really sticks with me is their devotion and camaraderie,” said Duane Mattox, History, Las Vegas High School, Las Vegas Nev., “The strong devotion they have for their Corps and the tight camaraderie built among one another is amazing.”
Educators also watched a demonstration of the modified Bayonet Assault Course, and were offered a chance to run through the obstacles themselves. They maneuvered through the course; crawled through tunnels; and navigated a rope bridge, suited in flak jackets and Kevlar helmets, while carrying rubber M16A2 service rifles with training bayonets attached before engaging training targets at the end of the course.
The educators traveled to Marine Corps Air Station, Miramar and Weapons Field Training Battalion, Edson Range, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., as well, to get a closer look at some of the aircraft the Marine Corps employs and witness weapons firing and field training, and observe Company I participate in the emblem ceremony.
Educators leaving the depot today said that they now have a better understanding of the Marine Corps and the young men and women who embody it.