General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

William Wright Crouch (born July 12, 1941) is a retired United States Army four-star general who served as

Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army The vice chief of staff of the Army (VCSA) is the principal deputy to the chief of staff of the Army, and is the second-highest-ranking officer on active duty in the Department of the Army. The vice chief of staff generally handles the day-to-d ...

from 1997 to 1998.

Early life

Crouch was born on July 12, 1941 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, California. He attended the

San Diego Army and Navy Academy Army and Navy Academy is an elite private college-preparatory military boarding school for boys in Carlsbad, California. Founded in 1910, the academy admits boys in grades 7 through 12. History The academy was founded by Colonel Thomas A. Dav ...

and graduated from Claremont Men's College with a degree in Civil Government. He holds a master's degree in History from

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciple ...

Military career

Crouch commanded soldiers at every level from platoon through to army. He began his service in 1963 as a cavalry platoon leader in the 5th Infantry Division. He went on to command four companies, two of which were cavalry troops in combat. His subsequent commands included a cavalry squadron, the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment and the 5th Infantry Division. He also served as Commanding General of the

Eighth United States Army The Eighth Army is a U.S. field army which is the commanding formation of all United States Army forces in South Korea. It commands U.S. and South Korean units and is headquartered at the Camp Humphreys,United States Forces Korea United States Forces Korea (USFK) is a sub-unified command of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). USFK is the joint headquarters for U.S. combat-ready fighting forces and components under the ROK/US Combined Forces Command (CFC) – a ...

. Crouch assumed command of

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on December 19, 1994, and assumed command of Allied Land Forces Central Europe (LANDCENT) on February 15, 1996, and was its first American since its establishment in 1993. He served as Vice Chief of staff from 1997 until his retirement in 1998. Crouch is a graduate of the

United States Army Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

and the

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army educational institution in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instruction to senior military offic ...

. His decorations include the

Defense Distinguished Service Medal The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally distinguished performance of duty contributing to the ...

, the Army Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit, and the Bronze Star Medal with

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Awards and decorations

Post-military career

Crouch, along with retired Admiral Harold W. Gehman, Jr., were appointed by Defense Secretary William S. Cohen on October 19, 2000 as co-chairmen of the Department of Defense's Cole Commission to investigate the bombing of the . He has also served on the board of directors of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America,CADCA Board of Directors
and since May 2005 has served on the board of Directors of

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. He is also a Senior Mentor with the Leadership Development and Education Program for Sustained Peace at the United States Naval Postgraduate School, serves on the board of the Keck Institute for International and Strategic Studies at Claremont McKenna College, and sits on the advisory board of

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Personal life

Crouch's wife, Vicki, also a native of Southern California, attended Scripps College, as did their two daughters Cami and Cathi. The Crouches have two grandchildren, Chris and Elizabeth, and reside in Colorado.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crouch, William W. 1941 births Living people People from Los Angeles Claremont McKenna College alumni Texas Christian University alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army generals United States Army Vice Chiefs of Staff Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Military personnel from California