District Digest News Stories

Regional Leadership Development Program class visits Center Hill Dam

Nashville District
Published March 5, 2019
LANCASTER, Tenn., (March. 5, 2019)— U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District Commander, Lt. Col Cullen Jones, welcomed 12 students from the 2019 Regional Leadership Development Program Tier III class from the Great Lakes and Ohio River Division during a recent visit to the district.  (Photo by Mark Rankin)

Members of the 2018-2019 Leadership Development Program Tier 3 class of the Great Lakes and Ohio River Division pause for a photo prior to touring Nashville District’s Center Hill Dam Power Plant Feb. 27, 2019. Members of the team are: Chris Akios, Buffalo; Scott Kozak, Chicago; Cynthia Jarema, Detroit; Tyler Bintrim and Jesse Bisnette, Pittsburg; Angie Dunn and Cory Morgan, Nashville; Cristie Mitchell and Steve Farkus, Louisville; Kim Davidson and Rebecca Albert, Huntington; and Jeremy Cobb from LRD, Cincinnati

LANCASTER, Tenn., (March. 5, 2019)— U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District Commander, Lt. Col Cullen Jones, welcomed 12 students from the 2019 Regional Leadership Development Program Tier III class from the Great Lakes and Ohio River Division during a recent visit to the district.

Jones and his staff provided overviews at Nashville District headquarters inside the Estes Kefauver Federal Building, in Nashville, Tenn.

“Change is constant and to be successful within an ever changing environment, you must be as knowledgeable as you can, and have a vision,” said Jones.   “This training is key to your leadership advancement and it will help you have a broader understanding of how the Corps functions.”

The Leadership Development Program III, or “LDP” as it is commonly referred, is part three of a three step program to increase managerial and leadership skills of selected Corps employees.

Comprised of USACE employees selected as future senior leaders from LRD’s seven districts, the students meet with district commanders and senior leaders to get their perspectives on each district’s projects, missions, challenges and their leadership role.

“This LDP 3 class included Chris Akios, Buffalo; Scott Kozak, Chicago; Cynthia Jarema, Detroit; Tyler Bintrim and Jesse Bisnette, Pittsburg; Angie Dunn and Cory Morgan, Nashville; Cristie Mitchell and Steve Farkus, Louisville; Kim Davidson and Rebecca Albert, Huntington; and Jeremy Cobb from LRD, Cincinnati,” said Dana Craig, LRD Regional Workforce Development Specialist and team coordinator.  “This group represents the Corps leadership of today and tomorrow,” she said.

Cory Morgan, from the Nashville District Engineering and Construction Branch, said during a two-day visit to the Nashville District, the students received an overview of the districts’ projects, and briefs from the Tennessee Valley Authority representatives, Hydropower Program Overview/Section 212 Program, Recreation Program Overview, and visited Center Hill Dam Power Plant.

“It’s really great to have the team visit the district to understand our mission and see its many outstanding projects and accomplishments,” said Morgan.  

Morgan said partnerships, relationships and leadership were highlighted when partnerships from TVA, other Federal and state agencies, the Southeast Power Administration, and relationships with Members of Congress and numerous stakeholders were explained during the brief.

During the afternoon of their second day’s visit the class toured the Center Hill Dam Power Plant and the ongoing construction of the Center Hill Dam Roller Compacted Concrete berm where Linda Adcock, project manager, briefed them on the engineering challenges involved.

Attendees learned that Nashville District maintains 1,175 navigable river miles on the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers; that it operates 100% of LRD’s hydropower plants with nine on the Cumberland River; and also remotely operates the Sault St. Marie hydropower plant in the Detroit District.

Class members also learned that Nashville District’s Lake Cumberland is the largest lake east of the Mississippi River; that Wilson Main Lock’s maximum lift of 99.5 feet is the highest east of the Mississippi River; that Nashville was the most visited district in the Corps in 2011 and lead LRD with 31 million visits in 2012.

“It was really interesting to listen to the great presentations and I was amazed at Nashville District’s challenges in operating its 10 projects on the Cumberland River and also managing, interaction and operation of 10 TVA navigation locks on the Tennessee River,” said Kim Davison, a geologist from the Huntington District.

Not only do employees learn about projects, people and leadership, they collaborate on various projects with each other on specific tasks and travel around to various the districts working on tasks designed to enhance their leadership skills. 

“This was a great visit and I really enjoyed the briefs and tour,” said Tyler Bintrim, from the Pittsburgh District. “Every district has a unique challenge and I enjoy having the opportunity to work with this group of talented leaders,” Bintrim added. 

"The LDP course is a highly selective process and I am grateful that I was chosen to attend this course,” said Jones.

Craig said applicants must have an impressive resume to begin with and they also have to be recommended for the program by their districts.  After that they have to be approved by a panel just to be able to take the class.” 

“LDP has a reputation of developing great leaders throughout USACE, and I’m glad the group visited the Nashville district giving us the opportunity to understand how the districts work together," said Angie Dunn, chief, Planning Branch, Nashville District.

The public can obtain news, updates and information from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District on the district’s website at www.lrn.usace.army.mil, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/nashvillecorps and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/nashvillecorps.