The Meritorious Public Service Medal formerly the Outstanding Civilian Service Award is the third highest honor within the public service awards scheme of the

Department of the Army The United States Department of the Army (DA) is one of the three military departments within the Department of Defense of the U.S. The Department of the Army is the federal government agency within which the United States Army (U.S.) is org ...

that can be awarded to a private citizen.

Eligibility

The Secretary of the Army or a major commander may award this medal to eligible recipients, including civilians not employed by the Army or Army contractors (who are eligible for Army honorary awards), military personnel, Federal Government officials at the policy development level, and technical personnel who serve the Army in an advisory capacity or as consultant, for "outstanding service that makes a substantial contribution or is of significance to the Major Command concerned."

Criteria

The

Secretary of the Army The secretary of the Army (SA or SECARMY) is a senior civilian official within the United States Department of Defense, with statutory responsibility for all matters relating to the United States Army: manpower, personnel, reserve affairs, insta ...

or a major commander may award this medal for outstanding service that makes a substantial contribution or is of significance to the major Army command concerned. Commanders of Major Army commands may delegate approval authority for this award to any commander in the rank of Major General or above.

Appearance

The Meritorious Public Service Medal is a bronze disc in height and in width. On the obverse is an equilateral triangle symbolic of the civilian. Superimposed on the triangle is the eagle from the Great Seal of the United States. At the base of the medal is a wreath denoting nonmilitary service. The reverse of the medal is inscribed ''AWARDED TO'' and ''FOR MERITORIOUS PUBLIC SERVICE TO THE UNITED STATES ARMY''. The medal is suspended by a ribbon in width consisting of 13 alternating stripes equally spaced, seven white and six red. Centered on each white stripe is with an oriental blue stripe wide.

Notable recipients

* William Atwater - author and former Director of the United States Army Ordnance Museum * BG Albert Bryant, Jr., USA (Ret.) * E.N.J. Carter - creator of the "'' Be All You Can Be''" slogan * Stephen Colbert - TV talk show host for his continued support of U.S. troops *

Paul Fiset Paul Fiset (English pronunciation: ''Fih-ZAY''; November 7, 1922 – February 27, 2001) was a Canadian-American microbiologist and virologist. His research helped to develop one of the first successful Q fever vaccines, noted by ''The New York ...

, M.D., Ph.D. - Armed Forces Epidemiological Board 19651976 and consultant to the Surgeon General * SMA

Richard A. Kidd Richard A. Kidd (born June 24, 1943) is a retired United States Army soldier who served as the ninth Sergeant Major of the Army. He was sworn in on July 2, 1991, and served until his term expired in June 1995. Military career Kidd's assignments ...

, USA (Ret.) - former Sergeant Major of the Army * Captain

David Minard Captain David Minard, MC, USN (May 23, 1913 – October 9, 2005) was an American physiologist who was heat stress physiologist for Project Mercury, the United States' first human spaceflight. In the late 1950s, Minard as a captain in the U.S. Na ...

, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., MC USN - Mercury Seven heat stress

physiologist Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical a ...

for Project Mercury * Audie Murphy - most decorated US Army soldier in World War II * Francis Joseph Murray - Mathematician known for his foundational work on functional analysis *

Mark Pfeifle Mark Pfeifle (born March 30, 1972) was a top National Security Advisor (United States), national security advisor and communicator for President George W. Bush. Pfeifle served as deputy assistant to the president and deputy national security adv ...

- former Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications and Global Outreach under President George W. Bush. *

Elihu Rose Elihu Rose (born March 30, 1933) is an American real estate developer, academic, and philanthropist.Elihu Rose Biography
...

- military historian * Bud Selig - former Commissioner of Major League Baseball for MLB's support of veterans and their families. * Gary Sinise - Hon.

CPO CPO may refer to: Occupations * Certified Professional Organizer * Certified Protection Officer, a professional certification for security officers from the International Foundation for Protection Officers * Chief people officer, a corporate of ...

, USN - for substantial contributions to the U.S. Army community through his work with the Gary Sinise Foundation *

Emil Skodon Emil Skodon, (born November 25, 1953, in Chicago, Illinois) former United States diplomat and a career foreign service officer. He was the U.S. ambassador to Brunei until August 1, 2008. He was sworn in as ambassador on September 7, 2005, and pre ...

- former United States Ambassador to Brunei and a career

foreign service officer A Foreign Service Officer (FSO) is a commissioned member of the United States Foreign Service. Foreign Service Officers formulate and implement the foreign policy of the United States. FSOs spend most of their careers overseas as members of U ...

Jay Luvaas Jay Luvaas (15 June 1927 – 9 January 2009) was an American military historian who was an expert on the American Civil War and the history of military theory. He was the first civilian to hold a visiting professorship of military history at Wes ...

– military historian

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Army Outstanding Civilian Service Award Awards and decorations of the United States Department of Defense

Eligibility

Criteria

Appearance

Notable recipients

See also

References