Enlisted Service Member Credits Whitman’s DCP for Furthering Career

When Sgt. Maj. Julie Harris ’13 MBA/EMPA (WSM/MAX) was stationed at Fort Bragg, a commissioned officer walked by her office to ask a question. He stopped suddenly and commented, “Oh, you wouldn’t know… you’re enlisted.” Glancing at the two master’s degree diplomas hanging on her office wall, he reconsidered. “You have more degrees than me!” he said.

Those two diplomas were the result of 14 months of intense work at Syracuse University’s Defense Comptrollership Program (DCP), funded by The Department of Defense (DOD) with a dual degree comprised of an MBA through the Whitman School and an executive master's degree in public administration (EMPA). Harris, currently stationed at the United States Army Financial Management Command (USAFMCOM) in Indianapolis, which is a focal point for all Army finance and comptroller operations, completed her dual degrees in 2013. As an enlisted service member, she is grateful to the DCP for giving her the skills to take on more responsibilities, gaining more respect from those who outrank her and, ultimately, allowing her the opportunity to advance in her career.

Harris has always valued education. The oldest of six children, she knew that the U.S. Army was her opportunity to get a college degree, so she enlisted. While in the Army, Harris juggled online classes, first at the University of Phoenix, where she earned an associate degree, and then at Franklin University, where she completed a bachelor’s degree in business administration. It was a challenge working and going to school simultaneously, but she succeeded. After almost 10 years in the Army, she decided it was time to take her education further. It was then that she heard out about the DCP through her colonel.

“I wasn’t completely sure what an executive master’s degree in public administration was, but I knew I wanted an MBA,” she says of the dual degree program. “And, the Army would pay me to go to school full time, while also covering my tuition and expenses.”

The majority of those who attend the DCP are commissioned officers, primarily in the U.S. Army, but there are a number of spots available for enlisted personnel. Harris received one of those spots and was, in fact, only the second non-commissioned officer to go through the program. In March of 2012, she was promoted to sergeant first class (E-7), and that May Harris arrived at Syracuse University to begin the program.

“In the Defense Comptrollership Program, it was my full-time job to earn my degrees. Being able to focus just on school was a great experience,” Harris explains. “I was taking courses with officers and civilian counterparts, but everyone was in civilian clothes. I was treated like everyone else, and we were all on a first name basis.”

She valued the relationships she formed with her classmates, particularly several strong women — female officers from different branches of the military — who remain friends and mentors today.

Harris graduated in 2013 with her MBA/EMPA and went back to Fort Bragg to work in financial management. She then went on to complete the Army’s Sergeant Major Academy and credits the DCP for teaching her some of the skills she needed to be promoted.

While Harris’s most important responsibilities right now are her two daughters — one born just three months ago and the other age 9 — she will return to her post in July and continue until her retirement, scheduled for March 2025. After that, she hopes to obtain a position with the U.S. government, using all the experience and education learned over the past 20 years with the Army and through her academic degrees to succeed in the civilian workforce.

“Enlisted personnel are kind of known as those who just put our nose to the grindstone and keep working,” she explains. “But, I knew I wanted more. I really encourage others to look into the DCP at Syracuse University, and I especially encourage other enlisted personnel to focus on the opportunities and knowledge they can gain. It has helped me in my career with the Army, and I know I can also take those skills with me into the next chapter of my career.”