Toccoa native set to take command of Army tank platoon
Pictured, from left, are Howard’s mother, Uganda Burton, Howard’s nephew, Chase Hickman, A.J. Howard, Howard’s grandmother, Rachel Burton, Howard’s sister, Adjai Howard and Howard’s father, Avero Howard
Toccoa native A.J. Howard graduated from the U.S. Army’s Armor Basic Officer Leaders Course (ABOLC) at the Maneuver Center of Excellence in Columbus, on September 7.
Howard is now qualified as a Tank Platoon Leader and able to successfully lead a tank platoon in any operational environment.
Armor school trains and develops soldiers to be capable of leading, fighting, and winning “at the point of contact” against any adversary.
Howard reflects on his time in the course by stating, “it took countless hours of grit and perseverance especially while authoring a memoir along the way.”
Howard did not complete the course in the traditional 19-week route, but instead in a 31-week period due to minor setbacks along the way.
He says it took time to transition from graduating West Point, to coaching Division-1 football at Army for a season, to learning the fundamentals of being an Army officer on the battlefield.
Howard will continue training at Fort Moore – previously Fort Benning – for follow-on schools for the next few weeks before heading to his first duty station and taking over a platoon at Fort Cavazos, Texas
Howard says he also plans to finish his memoir and publish it before the new year. In the memoir, he recalls the adversities in his life, from childhood to the present.