Joint Advanced Warfighting School

Abstract : When the United States employs military power, it does so as a joint force. The cornerstone for effective joint force employment remains Service competency, but truly effective Service warfighters must think, plan and fight jointly. The key to developing officers who can think, plan and fight jointly is education. The vehicles employed to attain that objective are known as Service Professional Military Education (PME) and Joint Professional Military Education (JPME). In 1987, the House Armed Services Committee established a Panel on Military Education chaired by Representative Ike Skelton (D-Mo). This panel's findings and recommendations led to numerous reforms in the U.S. military JPME program. The panel studied Service PME programs at both the Intermediate Level School (ILS) and Top Level School/Senior Service College (TLS/SSC) to ensure that U.S. officers changed from Service-centric to joint thinkers, planners and warfighters.