§663 . Education

(a) Capstone Course for New General and Flag Officers.-(1) Each officer selected for promotion to the grade of brigadier general or, in the case of the Navy, rear admiral (lower half) shall be required, after such selection, to attend a military education course designed specifically to prepare new general and flag officers to work with the other armed forces.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), the Secretary of Defense may waive paragraph (1)-

(A) in the case of an officer whose immediately previous assignment was in a joint duty assignment and who is thoroughly familiar with joint matters;

(B) when necessary for the good of the service;

(C) in the case of an officer whose proposed selection for promotion is based primarily upon scientific and technical qualifications for which joint requirements do not exist (as determined under regulations prescribed under section 619(e)(4) of this title); and

(D) in the case of a medical officer, dental officer, veterinary officer, medical service officer, nurse, biomedical science officer, or chaplain.

(3) The authority of the Secretary of Defense to grant a waiver under paragraph (2) may only be delegated to the Deputy Secretary of Defense, an Under Secretary of Defense, or an Assistant Secretary of Defense. Such a waiver may be granted only on a case-by-case basis in the case of an individual officer.

(b) Joint Military Education Schools.-The Secretary of Defense, with the advice and assistance of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, shall periodically review and revise the curriculum of each school of the National Defense University (and of any other joint professional military education school) to enhance the education and training of officers in joint matters. The Secretary shall require such schools to maintain rigorous standards for the military education of officers with the joint specialty.

(c) Other Professional Military Education Schools.-The Secretary of Defense shall require that each Department of Defense school concerned with professional military education periodically review and revise its curriculum for senior and intermediate grade officers in order to strengthen the focus on-

(1) joint matters; and

(2) preparing officers for joint duty assignments.

(d) Post-Education Joint Duty Assignments.-(1) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that each officer with the joint specialty who graduates from a joint professional military education school shall be assigned to a joint duty assignment for that officer's next duty assignment after such graduation (unless the officer receives a waiver of that requirement by the Secretary in an individual case).

(2)(A) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that a high proportion (which shall be greater than 50 percent) of the officers graduating from a joint professional military education school who do not have the joint specialty shall receive assignments to a joint duty assignment as their next duty assignment after such graduation or, to the extent authorized in subparagraph (B), as their second duty assignment after such graduation.

(B) The Secretary may, if the Secretary determines that it is necessary to do so for the efficient management of officer personnel, establish procedures to allow up to one-half of the officers subject to the joint duty assignment requirement in subparagraph (A) to be assigned to a joint duty assignment as their second (rather than first) assignment after such graduation from a joint professional military education school.

(e) Duration of Principal Course of Instruction at Armed Forces Staff College.-(1) The duration of the principal course of instruction offered at the Armed Forces Staff College may not be less than three months.

(2) In this subsection, the term "principal course of instruction" means any course of instruction offered at the Armed Forces Staff College as Phase II joint professional military education.

(Added Pub. L. 99–433, title IV, §401(a), Oct. 1, 1986, 100 Stat. 1027 ; amended Pub. L. 101–189, div. A, title XI, §1123(c)(1), Nov. 29, 1989, 103 Stat. 1557 ; Pub. L. 102–190, div. A, title IX, §912(a), Dec. 5, 1991, 105 Stat. 1452 ; Pub. L. 103–160, div. A, title IX, §933(a), Nov. 30, 1993, 107 Stat. 1735 .)

Amendments

1993-Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 103–160 amended subsec. (d) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (d) read as follows: "Post-Education Duty Assignments.-The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that-

"(1) unless waived by the Secretary in an individual case, each officer with the joint specialty who graduates from a joint professional military education school shall be assigned to a joint duty assignment for that officer's next duty assignment; and

"(2) a high proportion (which shall be greater than 50 percent) of the other officers graduating from a joint professional military education school also receive assignments to a joint duty assignment as their next duty assignment."

1991-Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 102–190 designated existing provisions as par. (1) and added par. (2).

1989-Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 101–189 added subsec. (e).

Effective Date of 1993 Amendment

Section 933(b) of Pub. L. 103–160 provided that: "The amendments made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall apply with respect to officers graduating from joint professional military education schools after the date of the enactment of this Act [Nov. 30, 1993]."

Effective Date of 1991 Amendment

Section 912(b) of Pub. L. 102–190, as amended by Pub. L. 102–484, div. A, title IX, §921, Oct. 23, 1992, 106 Stat. 2473 , provided that: "The amendment made by subsection (a)(2) [amending this section] shall not apply with respect to the Armed Forces Staff College until January 1, 1994."

Implementation of Subsection (e)

Section 1123(c)(2) of Pub. L. 101–189 provided that: "Subsection (e) of such section, as added by paragraph (1), shall be implemented by the Secretary of Defense not later than two years after the date of the enactment of this Act [Nov. 29, 1989]."

Education Requirements; Joint Officer Management Program

Section 406(d) of Pub. L. 99–433 provided that:

"(1) Capstone course.-Subsection (a) of section 663 of such title [10 U.S.C. 663(a)] (as added by section 401) shall apply with respect to officers selected in reports of officer selection boards submitted to the Secretary concerned after the end of the 120-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 1, 1986].

"(2) Review of military education schools.-(A) The first review under subsections (b) and (c) of such section shall be completed not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. The Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress a report on the results of the review at each Department of Defense school not later than 60 days thereafter.

"(B) Such subsections shall be implemented so that the revised curricula take effect with respect to courses beginning after July 1987.

"(3) Post-education duty assignments.-Subsection (d) of such section shall take effect with respect to classes graduating from joint professional military education schools after January 1987."