183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute

The Virginia Army National Guard’s 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute has a rich history and is recognized as one of the best warrior training locations due to the ability to leverage world class instructors and modern classroom facilities, as well as the extensive training resources at Fort Pickett. This allows the Regional Training Institute to enhance our Warriors’ mastery of their craft while honing their leadership skills.

The Regiment is comprised of over 100 of the finest trainers in the Virginia Army National Guard organized into three battalions. The Regional Training Institute specializes in a multitude of areas, to include the 11B, 11C and 88M Military Occupational Skill transition courses, the Air Assault and Pathfinder mobile training teams, the Light Leader and Rappel Master courses, the Virginia Army National Guard’s Marksmanship Program, and the Officer and Warrant Officer Candidate Schools.

In 2017 the Regiment was successful in training more than 500 Soldiers from across the Active Component, Army Reserve and Army National Guard. Instructors from 1st Battalion, under the command of Lt. Col. Todd Riviezzo, were focused on training infantryman and graduated almost 300 Soldiers from the courses they provided in 2017. Instructors from 2nd Battalion, under the command of Lt. Col. Corey Stavinoha, focused on transportation training courses and qualified more than 100 new truck drivers, as well as conducting additional bus driver and truck driver training to units throughout the Virginia Army National Guard.

Instructors from 3rd Battalion, under the command of Lt. Col. Robert Fitch, had the privileged mission of training the future leaders of the Virginia Army National Guard as they host the Officer Candidate and Warrant Officer Candidate Schools. This past year saw the battalion commission 33 second lieutenants. The Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge of OCS Training placed second in the Virginia Guard’s Non-Commissioned Officer of the Year competition. Members of the most recent class of the Officer Candidate School won third place in the 2017 Adjutant General Rifle Matches, which is an incredible accomplishment. The Warrant Officer Candidate School produced nine newly minted Warrant Officers. While training at Fort McClellan, Alabama, Warrant Officer 1 Melissa Huntley-Bosco was named the Distinguished Honor Graduate for the course, marking the first time in 11 years that a Virginia Guard Soldier was awarded the honor.