Colonel Walter Holmes- A Maker of Men and Women of Character

News — By Buddy Sampson on February 12, 2024 at 7:00 am

However, His Fight With The U.S. Military Threatens to Overshadow His Accomplishments

By Buddy Sampson

In society, there are those that are problem solvers- makers of men and women of character, running towards the fires that face our communities, the plight of drugs, gangs and crime,  instead of turning away, pretending those problems don’t exist, hoping they will magically disappear. Colonel Walter Holmes is one of those heroes, a man of character, a true problem solver, determined to make a difference despite facing an institution determined to minimize the monumental accomplishments he’s made.

Colonel Walter Holmes has changed and affected many lives for the better with his involvement as the Senior U.S. Air Force Aerospace Science Instructor for PA-772, the Air Force JROTC Program at Abraham Lincoln High in the Philadelphia School District.  An Air Force Commander at McGuire AFB, near Trenton, NJ, Walter Holmes wrote a book detailing the qualities of leadership in the military and other industries, “Lead From The Middle, Lead From Behind,” that explains his passion for servant leadership and reveals technical processes for analyzing and defining the effectiveness of organizational leadership, such as in the military and education. President and CEO of The Fifth House, Inc., which has “designed a system to provide community-based educational & wrap-around student support services presented as a step-by-step strategic plan for an integrated community support system,” according to LinkedIn, his belief in community-based education has been lauded by educators.

“I created a process, a strategy for developing human potential,” said Colonel Walter Holmes. “The same thing we did in the military is being done in the classroom. Most of the things done in education came from the military. We applied principles that are based on growth models, and creating more of an individualized development approach.” A proponent of community-based education, he believes that getting families and communities involved in education will bolster confidence and prosperity, not only in urban areas, but in rural areas as well.

“Community-based education is not only for the kids, but for adults, leading them into these projects where they are actively involved and part of something that they can be recognized for,” said Holmes, who also holds a degree in Political Science from Cheyney University. “That’s a major piece of what community-based education is.” The accomplished author, leader and entrepreneur has also served as the Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officer to FEMA in Pennsylvania and as an U.S. Air Force Academy Liaison Officer.

The colonel and author has also been praised for his work on the “Wall Street Whiz,” a game he created to educate youth on stock market investing. Presented in several Philadelphia schools, the game was critically acclaimed by heads of several high school social science departments. As an Air Force commander, and former IG inspector, his briefings and presentations as part of the Human Resource Development Council (HRDC) “has saved us many months of hard work, and has provided us with a sound foundation,” explained Brigadier General James Sanders in a commendation letter. He’s worked as an educational consultant for the Philadelphia School District, suggesting and implementing changes in the evaluation and measurement of performance by students and teachers.

Brigadier General Jeremy “Java” Horn, commander of the Washington Air National Guard, in his article, “The Secret Rules of the Colonel,” said that “none of us really knew what we were doing the day we pinned on the eagles.” Colonel Walter Holmes, however, learned to know what he was doing, excelling as a Major in the Air Force, by studying and improving, and by creating new ways of disseminating information to communities that needed it, enabling him to be promoted to the rank of Colonel. He developed much of his skill as a leader while in the Air Force, which quickly garnered the attention of top military brass. “An incredible thing that happened to me and changed my life,” according to Holmes, ”I had worked in several Air Force programs of note, one was the implementation of Total Quality Management (TQM). It was all about how you lead people, manage resources.” He was also involved in the implementation of another program that had a significant impact on the Air Force, similar equal opportunity objective as the Affirmative Action programs for civilians in the 90s.

“The Air Force had a program that addressed issues of diversity called Human Resource Development (HRD),” he said. “They formed a Human Resource Development Council, (HRDC) which was the counsel for the entire United States Air Force. It was made up of all general officers, I was the only non-general assigned to the HRDC. The things that we developed were things that are still being done in the Air Force.”

However, General Horn also indicated in his writings to “understand that everyone is making it up as they go,” in underscoring the value of being a colonel and in military procedure. According to Walter Holmes, he was unceremoniously decertified as an AFJROTC Senior Aerospace Science Instructor following remarks made in an email by an AFJROTC HQ staff member from the Support Directorate Communications Division.  His remarks began a chain of events that led to his decertification, a disappointing incident that not only affected his life, but the lives of his students at PA-772.

“I was released by the Air Force because someone in headquarters said to me in an e-mail that I was not a real colonel and did not deserve to be addressed as one,” said Holmes. “To protect him, they decertified me, in an effort to have me removed from my position.” In Colonel Walter Holmes’ eventual decertification as an AFJROTC instructor, and subsequent denials of his appeal of that decertification, he was judged by the same AFJROTC HQ official, a possible conflict of interest. He was surprised at the active role of numerous senior Air Force leaders.

According to Rand.org, a research organization, “economically disadvantaged schools face difficulties recruiting instructors because the schools are often located in high poverty urban areas, which are unattractive to military retirees.” This should make the decertification of Colonel Walter Holmes a concern- his service to the community, particularly among minority students that need adult representation. Especially because students have demonstrated greater absorption of educational materials when they are taught by someone that looks like them, although he’s a model of servant leadership for all ethnicities.

In Colonel Walter Holmes’ case, the latest e-mails he received regarding his requests for information concerning his decertification have been complicated at best, confusing at worst. It appears that military personnel are attempting to run out of the clock on his appeals, with explanations that defy convention with military brass seemingly “making it up as they go.” When he sought a Department of Defense IG investigation report regarding Air Force decertification procedures through a Freedom of Information Act request, he was presented with a series of military gobbledygook. “This is the new ‘evidence,’ the Air Force said would be required to reopen an investigation into my decertification,” said Holmes.

The final response to his FOIA request for release of the DoD IG report raises eyebrows. “Disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy,” explained in an e-mail from the U.S. Government Information Specialist assigned to his case. “Exemption (b)(7)(C) applies to similar information in records compiled for a law enforcement purpose, where release could constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. In applying Exemption 6 and 7(C), a balancing test is done weighing the privacy interests of individuals named in a document against the public interest in disclosure of the information requested. The public interest in disclosure is one that will shed light on an agency’s performance of its statutory duties.”

Sounds questionable? Likely. “Now that the DoD IG has done an investigation, the US Air Force won’t release it,” he explained, “As an IG Team leader; I’ve led numerous base inspection teams. I have never seen anything like this.”

An investigation needs to be conducted in regard to the treatment of AFJROTC instructors, specifically minority instructors and decertification procedures. Junior ROTC programs, particularly in minority communities must be taught by military personnel that care about the communities they serve. Colonel Walter Holmes and other minority officers must have due-process in a transparent AFJROTC instructor decertification process with Congressional oversight. Without that process, minority officers are subject to promises of military reform that will never be implemented because of the obvious lack of transparency.

With such a distinguished background possessed by Colonel Walter Holmes, whose vision of local community development could help so many, especially in economically-challenged communities, he should have better treatment from government and the armed services, receiving the due-process he deserves and recognition for his vast achievements in the military as a Colonel. His decertification bears another look from the military chain-of-command, up to and including the President.

If you wish to purchase his book, “Lead From The Middle, Lead From Behind,” you may find it at www.amazon.com. Visit his website at www.thefifthhouse.com. If you are having problems in the military, call Congress’s GI hotline at (800) 972-3524.