Jerry G. Beck Jr. (born 18 December 1954) is a retired

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

officer. A career member of the

Pennsylvania Army National Guard The Pennsylvania Army National Guard, abbreviated PAARNG, is part of the United States Army National Guard and is based in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Together with the Pennsylvania Air National Guard, it is directed by the Pennsylv ...

, he served from 1977 to 2011 and attained the rank of brigadier general as assistant division commander of the 28th Infantry Division from 2003 to 2006, division commander from 2006 to 2009, and Pennsylvania's assistant adjutant general for army from 2009 to 2011. A veteran of

Operation Joint Forge The Stabilisation Force (SFOR) was a NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Bosnian War. Although SFOR was led by NATO, several non-NATO countries contributed troops. It was replaced by EUFOR Alth ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

and the

Kosovo Force The Kosovo Force (KFOR) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO-led international NATO peacekeeping, peacekeeping force and military of Kosovo. KFOR is the third security responder, after the Kosovo Police and the EU Rule of Law (European ...

, his awards included the

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. ...

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

with 2 bronze oak leaf clusters, the

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: Singapore *Pingat Jasa Gemilang, or Meritorious Services Me ...

with one silver oak leaf cluster and one bronze oak leaf cluster, the

Joint Service Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fift ...

and the

Army Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issu ...

. Beck was born in

Canonsburg, Pennsylvania Canonsburg is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States, southwest of Pittsburgh. The population was 9,735 at the 2020 census. Canonsburg was laid out by Colonel John Canon in 1789 and incorporated in 180 ...

and graduated from Monongahela's Monongahela High School in 1972. In 1975, he graduated from Millersville State College (now

Millersville University of Pennsylvania Millersville University of Pennsylvania (commonly known as Millersville University, The Ville, or MU) is a public university in Millersville, Pennsylvania. It is one of the ten schools that comprise the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Educa ...

) with a bachelor's degree in German and in 1977 he received his certification as a Spanish language teacher from West Chester State College (now

West Chester University West Chester University (also known as West Chester, WCU, or WCUPA, and officially as West Chester University of Pennsylvania) is a public research university located in and around West Chester, Pennsylvania. The university is accredited by the ...

). He worked in retail management for three years and as a high school teacher for four before beginning his full-time military career. Beck enlisted in the

in 1977 and was trained as a personnel management specialist. He graduated from officer candidate school in 1979 and was a traditional part-time member of the National Guard until 1984; during this period, his assignments included: platoon leader, company commander, and assistant plans operations and training officer (S-3) with 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry Regiment. As a full-time military member, he served in staff and command positions of increasing rank and responsibility, including commander of 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry and chief of staff at Pennsylvania's State Area Command. In 1995, he completed a master of science degree in instructional systems design at

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

. In 2003, Beck was promoted to brigadier general and he served successively as assistant division commander of the 28th Infantry Division, commander of the 28th Division, and assistant adjutant general for army. Beck's career as a general officer also included deputy commander of the

task force in

Bosnia and Hercegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

from 2002 to 2003 and commander of the

's Task Force Falcon in 2003 and 2004. Beck completed a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

Capella University Capella University is a private for-profit, online university headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The school is owned by the publicly traded Strategic Education, Inc. Capella has 47 degree programs with over 1,600 courses. Approximately ...

in 2011. After retiring from the military, he served as the civilian deputy commander of the

Fort Indiantown Gap Fort Indiantown Gap, also referred to as "The Gap" or "FIG", is a census-designated place and National Guard Training Center primarily located in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. A portion of the installation is located in eastern ...

garrison from 2011 to 2013. In 2013, he was appointed Pennsylvania's civilian deputy adjutant general for veterans affairs, and he served until retiring again in November 2016.

Early life

Jerry Gene Beck Jr. was born in Beck was born in

on 18 December 1954, a son of Jerry G. Beck and Gladys L. (Davidson) Beck. His parents later divorced, and his mother married Donald A. Stewart Sr. Beck was raised and educated in western Pennsylvania locales including

Library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...

, and he graduated from Monongahela's Monongahela High School in 1972. After high school, Beck attended Millersville State College, from which he graduated in 1975 with a BS degree in German. In 1977, he received his Spanish language teaching certification from

West Chester State College West Chester University (also known as West Chester, WCU, or WCUPA, and officially as West Chester University of Pennsylvania) is a public research university located in and around West Chester, Pennsylvania. The university is accredited by the ...

. Beck worked in retail management for

JCPenney Penney OpCo LLC , Trade name, doing business as JCPenney (colloquially Penney's and abbreviated JCP) is an American department store chain store, chain with 649 stores across 49 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. It is managed as part of the Catalys ...

from 1977 to 1980. From 1980 to 1984, he was a high school Spanish and German teacher. In July 1977, Beck joined the

. Trained initially as a personnel management specialist, he served as an enlisted soldier until completing the

officer candidate school An officer candidate school (OCS) is a military school which trains civilians and Enlisted rank, enlisted personnel in order for them to gain a Commission (document), commission as Commissioned officer, officers in the armed forces of a country. H ...

program of instruction in 1979. After graduation, Beck received his commission as a second lieutenant of

Infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

Military education

Beck's professional military education included: * Infantry Officer Basic Course *Infantry Officer Advanced Course *Combined Arms and Services Staff School *

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 ...

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army staff college in Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, with a Carlisle postal address, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instru ...

* Air University Senior Information Warfare Applications Course

Early career

After receiving his commission, Beck was assigned as a platoon leader with the Pennsylvania Army National Guard's headquarters detachment, where he served from May 1979 to December 1980. From December 1980 to May 1982, he was a rifle platoon leader with Company B, 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry Regiment. He served as Company B's weapons platoon leader from May to September 1982. He was then assigned to command of 1st Battalion's Company A, where he remained until May 1984. Beck served as assistant plans, operations, and training officer (S3) for 1-111th Infantry from June to August 1984, then as the battalion's logistics staff officer (S4) from August 1984 to August 1985. From August 1985 to April 1988 he was assistant S4 on the staff of the 56th Infantry Brigade. He served as the 56th Brigade's S3 from May 1988 to May 1992, and as the brigade's personnel staff officer (S1) from May to March 1993. From March 1993 to February 1994, Beck was assigned as the 56th Brigade's intelligence staff officer (S2). Beck served as assistant chief of staff for plans, operations and training (G3) on the staff of the 28th Infantry Division from February 1994 to September 1995. He received a master of science degree in instructional systems design from

in 1995. From September 1995 to October 1998, he was commander of 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry Regiment. He was director of operations (G3) on the staff of Pennsylvania's State Area Command (STARC) from November 1998 to November 2000. Beck belonged to several professional associations, including the

Veterans of Foreign Wars The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), formally the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States Armed Forces, United States war veterans who fought in wars, Military campaign, campaig ...

National Guard Association of the United States The National Guard Association of the United States was founded in 1878 as a congressional lobbying organization for National Guard issues. A member of the Military Coalition, NGAUS lobbies on behalf of over 400,000 officers and enlisted members ...

Military Officers Association of America The Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) is a professional association of United States military officers. It is a nonprofit organization that advocates for a strong national defense, but is politically nonpartisan. The association ...

Association of the United States Army The Association of the United States Army (AUSA) is a private, non-profit organization that serves as the professional association of the United States Army. Founded in 1950, it has 121 chapters worldwide. Membership is open to everyone, not ju ...

Reserve Officers Association The ROA (d/b/a Reserve Organization of America) is a professional association of commissioned officers, non-commissioned officers, former officers, enlisted and spouses of the uniformed services of the United States, primarily with the Reserv ...

and the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...

Continued career

In November 2000, he was assigned as STARC's chief of staff, and he remained in this position until July 2002. From July 2002 to February 2003, Beck served as deputy commander of Pennsylvania's

task force, which performed duty in

. From February to March 2003, Beck was assigned as assistant division commander of the 28th Infantry Division, and he was promoted to brigadier general in March 2003. From March 2003 to April 2004, Beck commanded Task Force Falcon, the Pennsylvania task force that took part in the

mission. In April 2004, he resumed his duties as assistant division commander of the 28th Infantry Division, and he served in this assignment until October 2006. In October 2006, Beck was assigned as commanding general of the 28th Infantry Division and he served in this position until June 2009. He was Pennsylvania's assistant adjutant general for army from June 2009 until retiring from the military in August 2011. After retiring from the military, Beck was the civilian deputy commander of the garrison at

from 2011 to 2013. In 2011, he completed a

in organization and management with a concentration in leadership at

. He served as Pennsylvania's civilian deputy adjutant general for veterans affairs from 2013 until retiring again in November 2016. Beck was a resident of

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

early in his military career, and later resided in Hummelstown and Shermans Dale.

Awards

Federal

Beck's federal awards included: *

with 2 bronze

oak leaf cluster An oak leaf cluster is a ribbon device to denote preceding decorations and awards consisting of a miniature bronze or silver twig of four oak leaves with three acorns on the stem. It is authorized by the United States Armed Forces for a spec ...

s *

with 1 silver oak leaf cluster and 1 bronze oak leaf cluster *

Army Achievement Medal The Achievement Medal is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. The Achievement Medal was first proposed as a means to recognize outstanding achievement or meritorious service of military personnel who were not eligible to rece ...

* Army Reserve Component Achievement Medal with 1 silver oak leaf cluster and 1 bronze oak leaf cluster *

National Defense Service Medal The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is a service award of the United States Armed Forces established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. It was awarded to every member of the U.S. Armed Forces who served during any one of four s ...

with 1 bronze star *

Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (AFEM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces, which was first created in 1961 by Executive Order of President John F. Kennedy. The medal is awarded to members of the U.S. Armed Forces who, a ...

Kosovo Campaign Medal The Kosovo Campaign Medal (KCM) was a military award of the United States Armed Forces established by of President Bill Clinton on May 3, 2000. The medal recognizes military service performed in Kosovo from March 24, 1999 through December 31, 2013 ...

Global War on Terrorism Service Medal The Global War on Terrorism Service Medal (GWOT-SM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was created through Executive Order 13289 on 12 March 2003, by President George W. Bush. The medal recognizes those military service ...

Armed Forces Reserve Medal The Armed Forces Reserve Medal (AFRM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, service medal of the United States Armed Forces that has existed since 1958. The medal recognizes service performed by members of the reserve com ...

with gold hourglass and M device with numeral 2 *

Army Service Ribbon The Army Service Ribbon (ASR) is a military award of the United States Army that was established by the Secretary of the Army on 10 April 1981 as announced in Department of the Army General Order 15, dated 10 October 1990. The Navy, Marine Corps, ...

* Army Reserve Components Overseas Training Ribbon with numeral 2 * North Atlantic Treaty Organization Medal with 1 bronze star *

Army Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or ...

State

Among Beck's state awards were: * Pennsylvania Distinguished Service Medal *Pennsylvania Commendation Medal *Pennsylvania Service Ribbon with numeral 3 *Pennsylvania Twenty Year Service Medal with 2 silver stars *Major General Thomas R. White Jr. Medal *General Thomas J. Stewart Medal *Governor's Unit Citation *The Adjutant General's Staff Identification Badge

Other

Beck was a 2006 recipient of the

National Infantry Association The National Infantry Association (NIA) was established in April 1982 at Fort Benning, Georgia as the Infantry Association, operating as a titular organization for the subscribers of “Infantry” magazine. In 1994, it was incorporated as the ...

's Order of Saint Maurice (Primicerius). In 2017, Beck was inducted into the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs Hall of Fame.

Dates of rank

Beck's effective dates of rank were: * Brigadier General (Retired), 31 August 2011 * Brigadier General, 1 March 2003 *

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

, 5 March 1999 * Lieutenant Colonel, 23 March 1994 *

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

, 16 October 1988 *

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

, 11 October 1983 *

First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

, 26 May 1982 * Second Lieutenant, 27 May 1979

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beck, Jerry G. Jr. 1954 births Living people People from Monongahela, Pennsylvania People from Hummelstown, Pennsylvania Millersville University of Pennsylvania alumni West Chester University alumni Penn State College of Education alumni Capella University alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni NATO personnel in the Bosnian War United States Army personnel of the Kosovo War National Guard (United States) generals Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Legion of Merit