U.S. Army Culture & Foreign Language Advisor Applications

The conceptual framework for the Army Culture & Foreign Language Adviser (CFLA) Enterprise was implemented in 2008. This vision focused on ways and means for operationalizing culture into practices and planning. The program grew into a staff of four at TRADOC (Training & Doctrine Command) headquarters and 15 CFLAs spread across various Centers of Excellence (COEs). The program flourished but then experienced challenges associated with budget cutbacks and competing priorities within the Army. The chapters are written from the perspectives of Tseggai Isaac, Ph.D., CFLA at the Maneuver Support Center COE, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri; El-Rayah Osman, Ph.D., CFLA at the Solider Support Institute, Fort Jackson, South Carolina; Mamdouh El-Nady, Ph.D., CFLA at the Army Aviation COE, Fort Rucker, Alabama; and Jim Schnell, Ph.D., CFLA Lead Social Scientist at Headquarters TRADOC, Fort Eustis, Virginia. Their perspectives convey keen insights regarding how the Army bureaucracy responded to this kind of innovation.