Dyess Airman attains perfection on CDCs

  • Published
  • By Airman Charles V. Rivezzo
  • 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  For Airmen, career development courses are the first line to becoming experts in their career fields. Airmen can spend countless hours flipping through endless pages filled with guidelines, operating procedures and resources to accomplish the mission.

CDCs can provide a daunting task for many Airmen working to upgrade their job qualification status. Failure is not an option, so the months of necessary preparation and studying requirements can take their toll on even the most talented Airmen.

However, Airman 1st Class Alexandra Hendrickson, 7th Operations Support Squadron, was able to find the key to mastering the first step in her Air Force career.

On July 6, 2011, Hendrickson, an aviation resource manager, became one of the few Airmen across the entire Air Force to obtain a perfect score on their CDCs.

"The test proctor held his hands up, signifying that I hadn't missed any questions," the southwest Michigan native said with a smile. "I was ecstatic. At the time, I had no idea how rare it was to get a perfect score; I was just excited to let my squadron know how well I did."

While this feat of excellence is rare, Hendrickson is no rookie to success. She graduated high school in 2009 as valedictorian of her class, led her basic military training flight to honor flight as their dorm chief and graduated top of her class at technical training school.

"To say the least, Airman Hendrickson is top-notch and one of the best I have ever seen," said Staff Sgt. Tyler Armstrong, 7th Operations Support Squadron and Hendrickson's supervisor. "I was not surprised at all to hear that she managed to get a perfect score."

As if perfection wasn't enough, she was also able to complete all five volumes of her CDCs and test in only half the time authorized, making this accomplishment even more extraordinary.

"As soon as I got to Dyess, I wanted to get started right away," Hendrickson said, who also achieved excellence on her physical training evaluation. "Any downtime I had - whether at the shop or at home - I spent studying. I made flashcards, used the self-test questions, referred to my tech school notes and did a whole bunch of highlighting."

One would think some downtime would be in order after an accomplishment such as this, but not for this sports enthusiast.

"I played every sport while I was in high school, so I enjoy staying active and fit as well," Hendrickson said. "Running, basketball and rollerblading with my husband are some of my personal favorites."

Hendrickson plans to continue working towards her Community College of the Air Force degree in aviation management and continue on to eventually earn her bachelor's degree in nursing.

"The sky is the limit for Airman Hendrickson," Armstrong said.