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Introducing the McElveen Resource Center

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Earon Brown
  • 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. --  In an effort to consolidate base morale, welfare and recreation services, the McElveen Resource Center will enter its initial opening phase Feb. 1.

The new MRC will be housed in what is currently the information resource center, previously known as the McElveen Library, and will be available to all Team Shaw personnel and dependents.

The MRC will be composed of three different entities to include the information resource center, Quiet Cup and the newly created Studio 20, according to Lt. Col. Dalian Washington, 20th Force Support Squadron commander.

Studio 20 will feature services once held at the community center and arts and crafts center to include: information travel and tickets (ITT), awards and plaques purchasing, balloon and basket sales, equipment rental, outdoor adventure trip reservations and special events planning and coordination.

The information resource center will include internet research and Wi-Fi, traditional education resources, a multimedia center, group work stations, e-books and DVDs for checkout and the addition of a computerized gaming room.

The Quiet Cup will also remain a part of the MRC and retain the coffee shop services previously offered.

This consolidation comes as a result of the Services Transformation Initiative devised by the Air Force Personnel Center. The initiative is part of the AFPC's efforts to ensure that Airmen and their dependents have what they need while tailoring how morale, welfare and recreation services are provided.

"After reviewing Air Force-wide data that included surveys and interviews, the Services transformation team recommended that bases keep, modify or divest themselves of programs and services, depending on each base's data."

At Shaw AFB, the result has been the relocation of services once held in the community center to the MRC. Amenities in the Airmen center are also being relocated between the MRC and the Carolina Skies Club and Conference Center.

The 20th FSS is taking a look at the services typically known as morale, welfare and recreation functions and determining whether the right services are still being delivered to customers, if they are being delivered in an efficient manner and whether things the customers no longer want can be reshaped or capitalized on to do something differently, said Washington.

"That's where we took a look at our portfolio and decided that we could deliver most of the same capabilities, and some new ones, in a more efficient matter," added Washington. "Hence, the MRC."

While several amenities are being consolidated into the MRC, a few new ones are also being added to the center to include advertising and print services. Base residents and employees will now have access to this resource for invitations, flyers and advertisements at a listed fee.

Currently, it has still to be determined what will now reside in the former community center, a decision that rests with the facility board, a responsibility of the 20th Civil Engineer Squadron.

"Our alternative was to transform or just shut it down and say you can get it outside the gate," added Washington. "We didn't think that was the right answer... by bringing (everything) under one roof, it allows us to keep these capabilities and still do cost cutting at the same time."

For more information on the MRC, visit the 20th FSS website (www.20thfss.com).

Editor's Notes: Italicized quotes were taken from Air Force Personnel Center article "AF is transforming how it provides services" located at the following link (http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123318524)