E1 army cryptologic linguist driver#

The Army’s best NCO is 30-year-old Staff Sgt. It’s a prestigious distinction in the Army, bringing a promotion, and a year’s worth of commitments as a representative for the military. Of the hundreds who enter, two victors emerge: a best soldier, and a best non-commissioned officer. (Emily Mesner / ADN)Įvery year, troops from around the world compete against one another in the Army’s “Best Warrior” competition - a battery of mental and physical challenges that is something like a martial cross between “Jeopardy!” and “American Ninja Warrior.” But with considerably more sleep deprivation and live ammunition. Army, photographed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage on Friday, Oct. Adam Krauland, a cryptologic analyst in the U.S. Although the name has changed, the mission remains the same: to provide quality complex case management to the Army's wounded, ill and injured Soldiers.Ssgt. The Army Warrior Care and Transition Program is now the Army Recovery Care Program. He plans to strengthen his fluency for the dual Juris Doctor and Russian program in the fall of 2024. He also applied to the Russian program at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He wants to finish his master’s degree in international relations with a concentration in Russian regional affairs this year. Recently, Sokolowski made the January promotion list from sergeant to staff sergeant. I felt really supported by everyone at the SRU.” “But I achieved my goal of completing everything before the end of 2021.

“It was definitely a struggle,” he recounted. Despite not testing for over two years, Sokolowski achieved a passing grade on his Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT) on Dec. After finding a suitable program, he spent two months in a rigorous one-on-one setting with an instructor. While at the SRU, Sokolowski spent over 6 months searching for Russian refresher programs because he’d missed two consecutive years. And even though I’m not a hundred percent, I’m a lot better than what I could have been.”

I’m just grateful that I got to keep my leg. “I was doing physical therapy with a bunch of guys who had lost limbs - multiple limbs, even. “That’s just an insane reality check,” he said. Afterward, he received admission into Walter Reed to do physical therapy with the amputee clinic. The procedures afterward involved taking out 25% of his patella, as well as a 12-hour femur reconstruction surgery. The collision left Sokolowski with a shattered femur and some nerve damage in his right leg.

E1 army cryptologic linguist driver#

Unable to see Sokolowski, the driver inadvertently swerved the car into his motorcycle as they both rounded a bend. A vehicle in the other lane slammed their brakes to avoid hitting another car ahead. On Thanksgiving 2020, Sokolowski got into a serious accident while riding his motorcycle on the highway. I was there for 11 months before I had sustained my injury.” “I was MOS qualified at the beginning of December 2019, and then I reported to 173rd in January 2020. “That was basically the training for the signals intelligence portion,” he mentioned. He began his studies in September 2018, graduated in October 2019 and continued at an Air Force base in Texas for additional coursework. It was difficult, but if you do anything for 10 hours a day for a year, you will gain some sense of proficiency.”įor a year, Sokolowski attended 7 hours of class daily and would do 3 hours of homework in the evenings. “They say the older you are … the less perceptive is to new ideas. “I was learning it as a 31-year-old,” he said.

So I hit the jackpot.”Īfter his deployment, Sokolowski went to the Defense Language Institute (DLI) in Monterey, California to begin studying the Russian language.įor Sokolowski, learning Russian presented a challenge. Thankfully, Russian was the only language they were accepting from D5s. “I was in D5 at the time and I wanted to learn Russian. “I was actually an all-source analyst first,” Sokolowski recalled. This role is paramount because the nation’s defense depends heavily on information that comes from foreign languages, and it’s something Sokolowski has long been interested in. What is a cryptologic linguist? They’re responsible for identifying foreign communications using signals intelligence equipment. John Sokolowski has dived headfirst into, thanks in part to some help he's gotten from the Walter Reed Soldier Recovery Unit (SRU) in Bethesda, Maryland. 'Russian cryptologic linguist' doesn’t sound like your typical profession. (Photo Credit: Courtesy) VIEW ORIGINAL 3 / 3 Show Caption + Hide Caption –ĪRLINGTON, Va. Taylor) VIEW ORIGINAL 2 / 3 Show Caption + Hide Caption – John Sokolowski is taking on a career as a Russian cryptologic linguist thanks in part to help he's gotten from the Walter Reed Soldier Recovery Unit (SRU) in Bethesda, Maryland.