Congressional Districts Replacing Zip Areas For Admissions Purposes
To: ADMISSIONS-FF@ORATOR.USMA.EDU
From: COL Mike Jones
Date: Thu, 29 Jan 2004 12:25:55 -0500
Subj:
29 January 2004
Teammates:
The New Year has come and gone. I certainly hope your January has been warmer than ours! A quick update on some major changes in how we do business here at the Directorate of Admissions. Since the 1960's we have been organized around a concept of zip codes. Effective 1 June 2004 we will no longer be organized in that fashion but rather be organized by Congressional District.
This is a logical transition that ties our organization to the entity responsible for filing our classes, the United States Congress. MAJ Mike Palaza, the Northeast Region Commander, and MAJ Pat Mullin, our Information Management Officer, have spent considerable time on this issue with me. We've briefed it to the rest of my Regional Commanders and staff officers. I've tasked all Regional Commanders to re-organize their Field Force from Zip Areas to Congressional Districts before 1 March 2004, so we can be prepared to hand the new organization off to the four new Regional Commanders reporting this summer. Please be prepared to work directly with them on this critical effort.
This will necessarily have some growing pains but I am confident that we will be able to provide better service to all constituencies in the long run. It will also allow me to better focus scarce resources where needed. The "Fair Share" methodology of evaluation in zip areas over the last several decades no longer serves us well. When all appointment sources are accounted for, each Congressional District should provide approximately three cadets a year to USMA. This includes Representative and Senator appointments, qualified alternates, additional appointees and all Service connected appointees on an annual basis, divided by the total number of Congressional Districts. I recognize that we will have to make changes in districts with the decennial censuses, but I see that as a plus rather than a negative. Another issue that will arise is districts in "At Large" states and those that have different "geographic" shapes in some states. We have some pretty discombobulated zip areas right now, so I believe we'll be able to work through the Districts that wind through states and cities in different ways.
An additional change that will be implemented on 1 June is we will no longer keep serving Field Force members or register new members who will not provide an email address with access to the Internet. I am sending this message electronically to my Field Force list server and by snail mail to all members of the Field Force. In the future we will place all members of the Field Force on the list server that I maintain to keep you informed on important admissions manners and updates to classes.
As I close this, I hope your 2004 is off to a great start. USMA 2008 is looking strong right now, keep up the good work. Go Army! MLJ
