Maj. Gen. Tony Hale, the commanding general of the Army Intelligence Center of Excellence at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, stops by a Spanish class to wish everyone happy holidays.
On the last day of classes before Holiday Block Leave, Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center students were already in vacation mode, with plenty of holiday cheer, song, dance and good food to go around.
Maj. Gen. Tony Hale, the commanding general of the Army Intelligence Center of Excellence at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, stopped by to wish everyone happy holidays and to rest up for the return to school in January.
“I came here to make sure the instructors don’t give you any mandatory homework,” said Hale, as he entered the classrooms. The students reacted with roaring laughter of approval. “But, if you want to study, I guess that is okay too…” Hale continued.
“I want you to be safe, get some well-deserved rest during Holiday Block Leave and come back and crush that DLPT in February,” said Hale, speaking about the final exam students take at the end of their course.
Hale challenged students to get high grades on their final exam, giving them incentive by saying that he will personally give them a four-day weekend if the entire class reaches a 2+ level on the DLPT. “Make note of the class number,” he told staff. “I want to personally follow up on this.”
Maj. Gen. Tony Hale, the commanding general of the Army Intelligence Center of Excellence at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, stops by the Russian schoolhouse to wish everyone happy holidays.
Hale also thanked students for serving, explaining that a very small percentage of the American population join the military. “Thank you for what you do. Only one percent of the population,” serves in the military. “Just look at what is going on in the world today,” he said, referring to Russia and China.
Joining in on the fun by dancing with the students, Hale says that he wants the students to understand that even commanding generals are human beings. “It is always good for them (students) to see that senior leaders are people, too.”
“The students energize me to do things and to make our services better. I think that it is important for them to see a human being as well as a senior leader,” Hale added.
