About the Course

The Defense Civilian Emerging Leader Program (DCELP) provides training to the next generation of Department of Defense (DoD) and the U.S. Federal interagency leaders.  DCELP fills a critical need by enabling the DoD and interagency partners to focus on leader development at the entry and emerging leader level of the civilian workforce.  Leadership development at this level establishes a baseline for further growth and development for the participant as the leadership responsibilities increase.  DCELP builds on the competencies generally required for the Lead Self, Lead Teams/Projects, and Lead People levels of the DoD Civilian Leader Continuum and support the DoD Civilian Leader Development Framework.

Learning opportunities include:

• Reflection exercises, leadership assessments, mentoring, peer coaching, individual coaching (optional), team and individual presentations, networking opportunities, “real world” applications of lessons learned through experiential activities, and a final Capstone project.
• Graduation requirements including the completion of a 5-minute oral presentation and development of a personalized Leadership Roadmap and Action Plan.
• Several opportunities to demonstrate and expand leadership skills throughout the program.

Funding

The tuition and course material are paid for by DoD Defense Civilian Personnel Advisory Service (DCPAS).  Travel, lodging and per diem will be the responsibility of each participant's unit.

Location

The 4 one-week in-residence courses are conducted at the National Center for Employee Development (NCED) in Norman, Oklahoma. 

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must be between a GS7 and GS12, or equivalent. You must have been with DHS for at least one year at the time of the application.

Application Deadline & Procedures 

Applications for Cohort 21 are due to the CG POC by COB on July 26, 2024.

1. Individuals must complete a DCELP application, submitting it as a pdf and saving it using the following: LastName_FirstName_USCG
2. Completed applications must be sent to SMB-COMDT-DHSAcademicProgramsAdministration@uscg.mil.

Program Manager

Ms. Alyssa Lombardi Blase

Additional Information

Review the DCELP overview for more information and check out all DHS Advanced Education opportunities on the DHS Academic Programs page (Accessible only through Coast Guard workstations).