A Discussion with the U.S. Army Institute for Religious Leadership (USA-IRL)

Article published on: May 1, 2024 in the Chaplain Corps Journal May 2024 issue

Read Time: < 4 mins

A small group of U.S. Army chaplains seated in a grassy area and conversing with one another

Tell us about the mission and purpose of your element:

The U.S. Army Institute for Religious Leadership (USA-IRL), Fort Jackson, South Carolina is the “Heart and Home” of the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps (CHC). Our mission is to generate and develop Area of Concentration (AOC)/Career Management Field (CMF) 56 Chaplains and Religious Affairs Specialists (RASs) and capabilities to provide religious support and advisement across the full range of military operations of the total force.

The USA-IRL was established in December 2021 to replace the U.S. Army Chaplain Center and School (USACHCS). It fully integrates the Religious Leadership Academy (RLA) institutional training base for Chaplains, the Non-Commissioned Officers Academy (NCOA) for RASs, the Graduate School for Army Chaplain Corps Professional Development (Grad School), and the Religious Support Operations Center (RSOC). The USA-IRL is a unified organization focused on CHC training and education, and personnel and operational support.

What’s one thing you’d like the rest of the Chaplain Corps to know about your element?

The USA-IRL manages training, education, faculty development, and produces leadership enrichment products in support of over 6,000 Chaplains and RAS personnel serving in the Active Army, the Army National Guard, and the U.S. Army Reserve.

Tell us about a project your element has been working on:

The planned end state of the USA-IRL transformation is a unified organization consisting of the Institute and a Field Operating Agency (FOA), formerly the RSOC, that empowers fully capable and creative strategic leaders at every echelon via improved recruitment, full lifecycle talent management, and synchronized operational support across a fully integrated Total Army Chaplaincy. As we progress towards establishing the FOA, key leaders across the Office of the Chief of Chaplains (OCCH), the USA-IRL, and the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) conduct monthly working groups to collaborate, plan, and execute FOA implementation efforts in accordance with the signed Memorandum of Agreement TRADOC-OCCH-0001 and HQDA EXORD 107-22.

Additionally, over the past year the USA-IRL has been conducting a workload analysis of current and future structure requirements via the Table of Distribution and Allowance – Change Management Plan (TDA-CMP). The TDA-CMP is the process used to request new organizations, updates, and/or changes to all TDA and Augmentation TDA organizations in the Army. It prescribes the organizational structure, the manpower and/or equipment requirements, and authorizations to perform the mission. Once finalized, the USA-IRL will submit the TDA-CMP to TRADOC for review and further coordination. These approved changes will further enhance the USA-IRL’s capabilities and capacity.

Why is your element so crucial to the mission of the Chaplain Corps?

A single unified organization is critical to enhance and streamline the delivery of religious support to the Army’s Soldiers and Families while improving unity of effort and unity of control under the Chief of Chaplains. The goal is to improve overall CHC integration, while posturing the CHC for continuous improvement at delivering superior value to the Army as we provide religious support for the Total Army. The USA-IRL will be fully unified with the FOA that the Chief of Chaplains intends to establish.

Take us inside your team and its dynamics:

Below are the members of the USA-IRL Executive Office and senior leaders of each organizational element:

  • Deputy Director/Commandant – Chaplain (Colonel) Louis A. DelTufo
  • Chief of Staff/Deputy Commandant – Chaplain (Colonel) Emmitt M. Furner II
  • Command Sergeant Major – Command Sergeant Major Thomas Roldan
  • Director of Training, Religious Leadership Academy – Chaplain (Colonel) Daniel Hardin
  • Dean, Graduate School – Chaplain (Colonel) Mark Lee
  • Commandant, Non-Commissioned Officer Academy – Command Sergeant Major Thomas Roldan

Below are the missions of each element within the USA-IRL:

  • The RLA manages the production, analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation of resident and non-resident training courses and products for Chaplains and RAS personnel of all three Army Components to produce skilled and ready Unit Ministry Teams.
  • The RLA manages the production, analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation of resident and non-resident training courses and products for Chaplains and RAS personnel of all three Army Components to produce skilled and ready Unit Ministry Teams.
  • The Grad School develops, conducts, and evaluates Institutional (non-PME), Operational, and Self-Development domain education on behalf of the Chief of Chaplains, Director, USA-IRL, and Commandant to provide adaptable and integrated chaplain educational programs that develop “competence, character, and commitment,” to form RS professionals at echelon.
  • The NCOA educates, trains, and develops senior RASs to be agile, adaptive, and committed leaders of the Army and religious professions capable of providing timely and competent religious support to the Army and Joint Force through resident and distributive learning methods and technologies.
  • The RSOC operationalizes CHC-wide training, provides a comprehensive means for managing ministry initiatives and programs, synchronizes RS efforts Army-wide, develops future concepts, assess, provides Doctrine, Organization, Training, Materiel, Leadership and Education, Personnel, and Facilities, and Policy (DOTMLPF-P) solutions, recruits and accesses quality religious professionals, manages eight RAS lifecycle functions, and manages talent across the Total Force.