A1C Brittany Dorris, Below-the-Zone winner at Altus AFB!

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Jennifer Seidl
  • 97th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
ALTUS AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  Airman 1st Class Brittany Dorris has earned promotion Below-the-Zone at Altus Air Force Base.

Promotion below-the-zone is a one-time promotion consideration to advance to Senior Airman six months prior to the fully qualified phase. Procedures for selection must ensure all eligible Airmen receive fair, equitable, and timely BTZ consideration. Airmen must meet all skill level requirements for their new rank, according to Air Force Instruction 36-2502.

"I credit this award to hard work, dedication, and my co-workers because this has all helped all in different ways to achieve my goal to make BTZ." said Airman Dorris.

As a client support technician for the 97th Communications Squadron, Airman Dorris served as the lead technician for distinguished visitor support, coordinating, planning, and testing requirements for six visits including the Air Force Judge Advocate General; she received praise on all these events, according to her promotion nomination.

She validated 32,000 user, group, and organizational accounts in under a month, eliminating more than 400 obsolete accounts; this enhanced network security on the base. Airman Dorris was a key player in the installation of 600 desktop computer systems valued at $600,000, which allowed Vista migration for the base to be completed two months ahead of Air Education and Training Command schedule, according to the nomination.

Airman Dorris also trained 4 technicians on trouble call management, which was critical to resolving help tickets, and ensured over 500 customer issues were corrected. She responded with quick action during the unit compliance inspection to fix permissions issues on file server, eliminating three potential wing-wide write-ups, according to the nomination.

"What I would recommend to others is to try your hardest and be ready to try new things. And to really listen to your co-workers and leadership to help guide you to reach your goals." said Airman Dorris.

Additionally, she completed A+ certification, which added to her technical skills, as well as completing 34 semester hours toward a Bachelor degree in Accounting while maintaining a 3.0 grade point average. She also completed physical training leader's course and was selected for the wing fitness assessment cell, testing over 30 persons; this promoted the "Fit to Fight" culture of Altus AFB, according to the nomination.

Airman Dorris was elected booster club secretary for her unit and sponsored four morale events and two fundraisers, raising $1000 in the first four months of the year. She was a Red Cross volunteer during the 2010 ice storm, helping with animal care at a local ranch; she made 16 visits to care for the ice-bound animals. She also served on the Adopt-a-highway clean-up crew, Mission Support Group retreat formation, commander's call proffer and helped with the ice storm clean up on base.

Airman Dorris is from Illinois, where she still has family. She graduated Hononegah High School and joined the Air Force that fall.

"I appreciate all the help from all my co-workers and leadership for helping me to achieve this goal. This award will help to achieve my goals a lot faster and show my co-workers that I can take on the responsibility that comes my way in the future." said Airman Dorris.