Mark A. Milley
General, U.S. Army
20th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

Mark A. Milley graduated from Princeton University with a Bachelor’s in Political Science in 1980, and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant of Armor in the U.S. Army through the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC). Milley has had multiple command and staff positions in seven divisions and in Special Forces over the last 32 years.

Assignments

His initial assignment was as Assistant Battalion Maintenance officer; later Platoon Leader, A Company, 4th Battalion, 68th Armored Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, 18th Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, NC, and later the 5th Special Forces Group, also at Fort Bragg. He then attended the Infantry Officer Advanced Course, after which he was reassigned to a Combat Support Brigade, 7th Infantry Division (Light) at Fort Ord, CA, where he served as Assistant S3 (Operations), commanded two light infantry companies, and was the Battalion S3 in the 5th Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division (Light), Fort Ord.

Upon completion of the course at the Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, KS, he served with the 10th Mountain Division (Light), Fort Drum, NY, as the 2nd Brigade Combat Team S3 and Executive Officer. He was reassigned to the 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment (Air Assault), 2nd Infantry Division, 8th U.S. Army, South Korea, followed by duty as a Senior Battalion Task Force Observer/Controller, Operations Group, Joint Readiness Center, Fort Polk, LA. Following the Naval War College, Milley served as the G3 (Operations) and Chief of Staff for the 25th Infantry Division (Light), Schofield Barracks, HI. After deploying and serving as the Commander, United States Provisional Brigade/Task Force Eagle, 25th Infantry Division (Light), Multinational Division (North), Eagle Base, Bosnia-Herzegovina; he returned to Fort Drum and took command of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team (Commando), 10th Mountain Division (Light) and led the “Commandos” on deployments to both Afghanistan and Iraq. During the deployment to Iraq, the 2nd Brigade Combat Team (Commando) was attached to the 1st Cavalry Division.

He was reassigned as the Joint Operations Division Chief on The Joint Staff in Washington, DC, and later served as the Military Assistant to the Secretary of Defense. He next served as Deputy Commanding General (Operations), 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky., and deployed as the DCG(O) for Regional Command-East, Afghanistan, and then as the Joint Staff’s Deputy Director for Regional Operations (DDRO/J33 Current Operations) at the Pentagon. Prior to his current assignment, Lieutenant General Milley was Commanding General, 10th Mountain Division (Light) and Fort Drum, from November 2011 to December 2012.

Milley's last command as a Lieutenant General was Commanding General, III Corps, and Fort Hood, TX. During LTG Milley's command, on 2 April 2014, Army Specialist Ivan Lopez, who had been treated for mental problems, was armed with a .45 caliber Smith & Wesson pistol and opened fire on the Fort Hood military base, killing three and wounding 16, before turning the gun on himself.

On 15 August 2014, Milley was promoted to the rank of four-star general and became the 21st Commanding General of U.S. Army Forces Command (CG FORSCOM), serving from 15 August 2014 to 9 August 2015.

Chief of Staff

On 14 August 2015, General Mark A. Milley was sworn in as the 39th Chief of Staff of the Army.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

On 8 December 2018, President Donald Trump announced that he would nominate GEN Milley to serve as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. On 25 July 2019, the United States Senate confirmed his nomination by a vote of 89–1 and he was sworn in on 30 September 2019.

Operational Deployments

His operational deployments include: the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO), Sinai, Egypt; Operation Just Cause, Panama; Operation Uphold Democracy, Haiti; Operation Joint Endeavor, Bosnia-Herzegovina; Operation Iraqi Freedom Iraq; and Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan.

Education

GEN Milley’s education includes a Bachelors Degree in Political Science from Princeton University, and Master's Degrees from Columbia University (International Relations) and from the U.S. Naval War College (National Security and Strategic Studies). He is also a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Seminar XXI National Security Studies Program.

Medals, Awards, Badges & Tabs

Defense Distinguished Service Medal with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
Army Distinguished Service Medal with 3 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
Defense Superior Service Medal with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
Legion of Merit with 2 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
Bronze Star Medal with 3 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
Meritorious Service Medal with Silver Oak Leaf Cluster
Army Commendation Medal with 4 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters
Army Achievement Medal with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
National Defense Service Medal with Bronze Service Star
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with 2 Bronze Service Stars
Afghanistan Campaign Medal with 3 Bronze Service Stars
Iraq Campaign Medal with 2 Bronze Service Stars
Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Korean Service Defense Medal
Humanitarian Service Medal
Army Service Ribbon
Overseas Service Ribbon with Numeral 5
NATO Service Medal with Bronze Service Star
Multinational Force and Observers Medal
Joint Meritorious Unit Award with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster
Meritorious Unit Commendation with 3 Bronze Stars
Combat Infantryman Badge with Star (2nd Award)
Expert Infantryman Badge
Master Parachutist Badge
Scuba Diver Badge
Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge
Army Staff Identification Badge
Ranger Tab
Special Forces Tab