LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. –
Every year, the Air Force produces about six or seven; however, the Marines at Quantico received their first in 2007.
Air Force Master Sgt. Teresa Clapper became an "honorary gunny sergeant" after becoming the first Airman to graduate at the top of her class at the Marine Corps Staff Noncommissioned Officer Academy Advance Course graduation Dec. 12 at Quantico, Va.
"Some people were just shocked," said the Air Combat Command manpower resources manager, as she recalled several comments like, "What Airman? What Air Force master sergeant? I thought Gunnery Sergeant Clapper was the honor graduate ..."
"My peers were surprised, but mostly impressed at how well I did without any Marine Corps experience," she said.
Originally scheduled to attend the Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, Sergeant Clapper volunteered for the Marine Corps SNCOA to deconflict schedules with her husband. Master Sgt. Michael Clapper, 1st Civil Engineer Squadron noncommissioned officer in charge of heating, ventilation and cooling, was postured to deploy during the same timeframe.
Having an Airman among Marines isn't common at the Marine SNCOA - each year, the Air Force Personnel Center only allots 15 seats for Airmen to attend the course - however, the experience proved to be invaluable not only for Sergeant Clapper, but also for her 22 Marine classmates.
"I thought it was great to have someone outside our own service attend the Advance Academy," said Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Fred Cipriano. "It gave us a better perspective on how the other services work and how we can better conduct joint operations to achieve the same goal."
Sergeant Clapper agreed, adding that although the academics were challenging and the course focused more on leadership in a tactical environment than leadership, it gave her a better understanding of how the services work together and why each works differently.
"Seeing the difference in how we operate really opened up my mind as to why we each operate the way we do," she said.
While Sergeant Clapper was at school leading group study sessions and running the obstacle course in boots and utilities, she credits her husband with the "outstanding" support he provided at home, taking care of their 3-year-old twins, Gage and Maegan.
"I never had to worry about my kids or home life because he did such a great job keeping everything together," she said.
And because Sergeant Clapper's husband didn't deploy during her time at the academy, he was able to attend her graduation, where she received the Marine Noncommissioned Officers' Sword.
Her husband said being able to attend her graduation was an honor, and allowed him to hear - first-hand - how the Marines felt about their "honorary gunnery sergeant."
"I think it's great for her to go to a sister service SNCO academy and be treated the way she was," he said. "They accepted her, and by graduation, they were calling her 'Gunny.'"
Both husband and wife were proud of her accomplishment, but at one point, Sergeant Clapper joked that her husband, who she refers to as "her biggest fan," was more proud than the honor grad herself.
"After I got back, he even took the sword to work," she said.
The sword, now back on the Clappers' mantle, serves as a sometimes surprising reminder of her mental and physical hard work.
"I went [to the academy] without any expectations except to make it through, and when I look at the sword, I think, 'Wow - look what I did.'"
But her husband wasn't surprised.
"She's a smart lady - that's for sure." he said. "And this isn't the first time she's won an award; she just seems to keep going."