the ALP's content is aligned with the Postal Service's Executive Competency Model. Participants in the ALP's four-week, classroom- based training are also required to complete 15 credits of college level courses prior to graduation from the program. Through partnership with accredited local universities, college credit courses are available at the Bolger Center for Leadership Development. Completion of the four weeks of resident training required for ALP also entitles participants to 12 undergraduate college credits through the American Council on Education. Since its inception, 60 groups have completed the first phase of the program. Fifty-five of these groups have completed Phase 2. Also, 295 ALP participants submitted certificate of completion forms with official transcripts, signaling their completion of all program requirements for the November 13, 2003, graduation. This brings the total number of ALP graduates to 1,036.

     The Career Management Program (CMP) has addressed the needs of supervisors and managers in the EAS 15 - EAS 22 range since 1999. Participants enter the program on one of three different tracks determined by results of an assessment based on the leadership competency model. The CMP includes one week of classroom instruction for each track and elective courses on specific leadership topics.

     The Processing and Distribution Management Program focuses on the core operational aspects of the plant manager position. The program familiarizes plant manager candidates with all functional areas and provides appropriate reference materials and tools. Classroom lecture is combined with real world experiences and learning is quickly demonstrated in projects and structured on-the-job instruction by plant managers designated as trainers. The participant receives a macro view of facility operations and planning, expands knowledge of support functions, and develops a strategic plan for change. Individuals identified for the positions of manager, Processing and Distribution Facility, EAS-23; manager, Processing and Distribution Center, EAS-25; and manager, Processing and Distribution

Center, PCES-1 are eligible to attend. There were two offerings this year, with 58 participants completing the course.

     The Associate Supervisor Program (ASP) began in 1996 as part of the Postal Service's commitment to provide equal opportunity for all employees. Its structured selection process includes 16 weeks of classroom and on-the-job training to prepare first-line supervisors for the responsibilities of their positions. There are three components of ASP. The first two weeks are classroom-based and polish leadership and management skills. The next six weeks provide functionally-specific training, balancing each day of classroom theory with four days of hands-on experience in active work environments. The final eight weeks focus on safety, labor relations, injury compensation and workplace violence awareness. The ASP's success has driven its growth into the universal postal vehicle for selection and training of new supervisors. All 80 districts participate in the program which now boasts 12,573 graduates. ASP is now certified for six college credits by the American Council on Education.

     ASP is currently utilized as the standard for recruiting and developing internal and external talent for critical initial-level supervisor vacancies in Operations and Customer Service. To assist in recruiting the most qualified talent for ASP, a new recruitment toolkit was developed and released during 2003. The toolkit includes a job overview video, information for applicants, and recruitment tips for ASP coordinators. Coordinators have access to the toolkit online on the Postal Service Intranet.

     Postal Service supervisors, managers, executives, and officers each received at least 20 hours of training in 2003. Safety continued to be a prime training target in 2003. Safety training now uses a standard online source of information to combine justin- time content with formal online and classroom instruction. Very specialized training assisted management and bargaining unit employees in transitioning back to facilities once closed due to anthrax contamination.