MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Upwardly mobile infantry leaders who want to keep their careers moving up through the staff noncommissioned officer ranks can now receive two-for-one school credit, in a sense. That's due to a new course that combines the combat tactics of the old Platoon Sergeants Course with the general Marine leadership training provided by the Staff Noncommissioned Officers Career Course. The consolidation of the two classes into the Infantry Unit Leaders Course — provided only to infantry Marines — means they'll need to take only the new class to stay proficient and fill a requirement for promotion.

The first class, which includes some new curriculum — most notably, expanded weapons training — finished last month at School of Infantry.

The consolidation means the Platoon Sergeants Course is going away. Noninfantry Marines will still attend the Staff NCO Academy.

The curriculum isn't the only thing new about the course.

A new honor, the Mitchell Paige Award, is given to the honor graduate. Paige, who retired from the Marine Corps as a colonel, received the Medal of Honor as a platoon sergeant on Guadalcanal while serving with Company H, 2nd Battalion, 7th Regiment, 1st Marine Division during World War II.

The new course takes some training from the Staff Noncommissioned Officers' Academy and combines it with the old Platoon Sergeants' Course.

It brings the total days in the course from 39 to 45 — but the result is a better course, say advanced infantry trainers here.

"Once a sergeant was promoted to staff sergeant in the infantry, he was automatically given the Infantry Unit Leader military occupational specialty. Now, he must complete IULC before he is given MOS," said Maj. Stephen P. Armes, company commander with Advanced Infantry Training Battalion at SOI.

"We took input from the (Fleet Marine Force) to see how to improve the course, and this is what we came up with," Armes added.

Parts of the curriculum dealing with traditional academics will now be more authoritative.

"We've brought in a college professor to teach some of the curriculum, basically what was brought over from the Staff Noncommissioned Officers' Academy. This includes written and verbal communications," said Gunnery Sgt. Lorenzo P. Jones, operations chief for the battalion.

The new course also provides better weapons training than the old Platoon Sergeants' Course, said Gunnery Sgt. Alvin V. Tovar, chief instructor.

"(It) has a deeper education in weapons organic to the infantry company. ... There is more time spent on the machine gun, mortar systems anti-armor systems, and fire support," he said.

"The old course, the emphasis was on platoon leadership and tactics. A staff sergeant could've trained in the lower ranks with a mortar section, gone to recruiting or drill instructor duty and then come back to a rifle company as a platoon sergeant in Javelin (anti-armor missile) section" Tovar said.

This way the platoon sergeant is familiar with all the weapons organic to the infantry battalion," Tovar added.

Tovar expanded on some of those differences.

"The old course spent five hours on mortars — new course 79.25 hours," he said. "The old course spent 22.5 hours on machine guns, versus 46.5 hours in the new course."

The new course also offers an additional 32 hours on anti-armor operations, Tovar said.

The inaugural course's first honor graduate — Staff Sgt. Adam R. Sikes of Company G, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment — praised the new course, especially the more-intensive weapons training.

"This is a crucial course for an upcoming platoon sergeant," he said. "We needed the improvements in the course to know our weapons.

"The junior Marines look up to you as their leader, so we need to be more knowledgeable, steadfast and courageous, because if we're not, who else can they look up to."

E-mail Cpl. Storm at stormrm@pendleton.usmc.mil.