Okay...I've read every post, sat through all the Monday morning quarterbacking, and put away my moderators cap. I'm now donning my ALO cap...so...read on.
First, its clear many have no clue how the process works with ALO's. Okay, I blame the ALO's for not telling you; or you for not listening. I don't know which it is but here's how the admissions process works when it comes to the USAFA Form 4060 interview.
ALO's are assigned in two categories: "Mentor ALO's" and "Evaluator ALO's." I happen to be both. The mentor ALO's mission/job is to do precisely that: mentor the candidate through the admissions process; responding to questions, helping with the paperwork, etc. They're the "big brother/big sister" in the process. The evaluator ALO is precisely that: an evaluator. Their role is to interview the candidate to a sufficient extent that they feel ready to fill out the 4060 evaluation of candidate. That's it.
SO...if a "reservist/corporate executive" takes a half hour to conduct the interview, don't try to second guess it because you don't have the knowledge and experience. Accept it and move on. If you saw the ALO conducting the interview while drinking a beer and reading the paper, then please forward to me your name and the ALO's name, or just your name, and I'll ensure that ALO is no longer in the program. If you didn't, then to put such a statement out is irresponsible of you. FYI, my interviews run 90-120 minutes...I dig...and dig...and question, and talk, and question some more...I get to know the individual in that interview; it's my one shot.
Now...let's turn to the counselors at USAFA. I called one yesterday about two students that are overseas. I was stunned, literally STUNNED when she picked up! I have been an ALO for 24 years, I have all the secret phone numbers that people on this forum don't...and I don't get a person 90% of the time. They're just that busy! I've been up there several times to work as a reservist and the amount of work the counselors have (there's only 10 of them for the entire world) is just mind boggling! They tell ME to e-mail and follow-up with a call. And be patient; and that's what I'll tell my candidates.
And finally, the role of the ALO. And BBBRRRTT, I'm going to use your comments as an example here: "I learned later that this was part of his reserve duty, so it was a sweet heart deal to add years to his service..." I'm guessing you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about, so let me educate you and the rest of our members. The ALO is most often a category "E" reservist. A Cat "E" is a reservist that is not a "drilling" reservist assigned to a mobility unit. That means they don't drill on UTA (unit training activity) weekends, and they don't get called to active duty for two weeks in the summer/or whenever. They also are not paid. They receive no compensation of any kind for their service other than points for their retirement. So if an ALO in "Cat E" status has a school 300 miles away that they must visit, that's on them. If they require a hotel...on them...maintenance on the car...on them...meals...on them. And what do they receive in this "sweet deal to add years to their service?" For every four hours of verifiable (and it must be logged and attested to by the minute" they receive one point for retirement. So in a full day (8 hours) they could received two points. They are limited in the number of points they can count each year toward retirement; currently it's 105 points maximum, if my memory serves. So...does that mean they only work that many hours a year? Maybe and maybe not; but only that many points counts. And what do points do? First you must have at least 50 a year for a "good" year; which means that year counts for retirement. Then when you look at what those points mean, you check the value of the points in retirement monies. For a colonel with 30 years (me) a retirement point is worth $0.77125 per point. So...if a reservist has 5,000 points, and is a 30 year colonel, they are looking at a check (before taxes) of approximately $3856.25 per month, after they reach age 60.
And lastly...realize that many of our ALO's (reservist/corporate executives) have other careers. Many are airline pilots, others are corporate types, some are school teachers like me...almost all have jobs and families and the ALO thing is something they volunteer to do. They are busy; you may have no clue how busy. I have 28 schools I cover in the fifth largest city in the USA...that's a bit of a challenge with all I have on my plate. But I love helping young men and women achieve their goals so I do the job...my wife has asked me many times in the past years to end it..."you've done enough" she'll say but...I am not ready to give it up.
So...climbing down from my soapbox...cut the ALO some slack...if you have a real, legitimate complaint, immediately contact the LOD (Liaison Officer Director) for your area! They will want to know! If you don't know who that is, PM me...I can tell you. We don't want "half-hearted ALO's" in our program; we want the best and the motivated.
Steve
USAFA ALO
USAFA '83
