CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – The Chief of Staff of the Army has announced the assignment of Major General Joseph P. “JP” McGee to be the new commanding general of the 101st Airborne Division and of Fort Campbell.
Previously, Maj. Gen. McGee served as Director of the Talent Management Task Force, in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff in Washington, D.C., according to a news release from the Department of Defense.
A native of Atherton, California, Maj. Gen. McGee was commissioned as an Infantry Lieutenant from the United States Military Academy, and graduated from West Point in 1990, according to his biography on the U.S. Army website.
His first operational assignment was to Fort Lewis, Washington, where he served in 2d Battalion, 60th Infantry Regiment as a Rifle Platoon Leader and Scout Platoon Leader. He then transitioned to 2d Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, as a Rifle Platoon Leader and Company Executive Officer.
He was then based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina for a period, and served in the Operations Directorate of the Joint Special Operations Command before being assigned to the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
Maj. Gen. McGee was at Fort Campbell from 2006 to 2009, and eventually assumed command of the 2d Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st BCT (Bastogne), 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault).
After serving as battalion command, Maj. Gen. McGee served as the Deputy Executive Assistant to the 17th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen.
Then he returned to the Bastogne Brigade at Fort Campbell and served as its Brigade Commander through October 2013. During this time the Bastogne Brigade served as one of the first “Advise and Assist” Brigades in Afghanistan and facilitated the transition of Security Forces in the Nangarhar, Kunar and Nuristan Provinces, according to his bio.
After this post, Maj. Gen. McGee returned to Washington, D.C., and served as the Executive Officer to the 38th Chief of Staff of the Army, under General Raymond Odierno. He then served as the Deputy Commander of Sustainment for 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas.
Before his most recent post of serving as Director of the Talent Management Task Force, he served as the Deputy Commanding General (Operations) for Army Cyber Command, Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
Maj. Gen. McGee’s military awards and decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal (5 OLC), the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal (4 OLC), the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Army Commendation Medal (4 OLC), the Joint Service Achievement Medal, the Army Achievement Medal (4 OLC), the Combat Infantryman’s Badge, Expert Infantryman’s Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Pathfinder Badge, the Ranger Tab, the Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge, and the Army Staff Identification Badge.
Maj. Gen. McGee is married, and the proud father of three children.