COLUMBIA (AP) -- The Army plans to change its graduation schedule at its South Carolina training base to save money and give recruits more family time.
Officials from Fort Jackson said Wednesday that the new schedule would have graduation day on Thursdays instead of Fridays at the end of recruits' 10-week training cycle starting on July 29.
Fort Jackson officials estimate the change will save $394,000 a year because of a reduction in overtime from travel to advanced training on Saturdays and eliminating one day of meals per cycle at the base's nine dining facilities.
The base graduates 45,000 soldiers from combat training in 45 ceremonies a year. Base officials estimate that 100,000 family members travel to Columbia each year to visit with graduates.
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