This is an oral history interview with Sergeant Major of the Army (Ret.) William o. Wooldridge, the first Sergeant Major of the Army, conducted on 6 February 2000.
The Command and General Staff College endeavors to instill critical thinking as a skill practiced by its graduates. To this end the college has introduced the concept of critical thinking as a class within the core curriculum. Students must take a...
The position of the Office of the Sergeant Major of the Army (SMA) has been filled thirteen times by outstanding Soldiers. Before appointment to this position, individuals will have already demonstrated several years of leadership ability and...
Analysts and analysts alone create intelligence. Although technological marvels assist analysts by cataloging and presenting data, information and evidence in new ways, they do not do analysis. To be most effective, analysts need an overarching,...
Sergeant Major of the Army (SMA) Tilley began his career just intending to be a good soldier. He had no ambition to be anything special in the Army. He saw action in the Vietnam War and served in varied position as an NCO that prepared him, without...
Gene and James (twins) were born in 1950 in a Monticello, Florida (Elder 179). Gene
and his 8 sibling were raised with discipline and hard work. I am introducing you to James also
because he will be mentioned again in subsequent briefing of SMA...
Often solely viewed as the highest enlisted position, the position of Sergeant Major of the Army is one of esteemed selfless service dedicated to the welfare of the total enlisted force. This research paper will depict the role of the Sergeants...
The U.S. Information Agency (USIA) was founded in 1952 to coordinate communication with the international community during the Cold War. Since being disbanded in 1999 many government officials have realized that the ability to communicate globally...
This monograph examines the conduct of biometrically supported census operations as a population control measure in a counterinsurgency campaign. First, the monograph explores why the conduct of such an operation is relevant in the current...
Leon L. Van Autreve dedicated his military career to establishing and enforcing standards and improving the reputation of the Non Commissioned Officer Corp. From the battlefields of World War II to the jungles of Vietnam, Leon Van Autreve led...
From 1966 to present, we have had thirteen Sergeants Major of the Army (SMA). Each one of them has made a lasting contribution to the Army and NCO Corps during his tenure in office. Some of those significant contributions were in the areas of...
The creation of the Office of the Sergeant Major of the Army in July 1966 represented a major milestone in the development of the United States Army. For the first time in history, an enlisted person assumed the role of a senior enlisted adviser...
The deployment of the 706th Ordnance Company (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) to Kandahar, Afghanistan was the highlight of my career and served as validation for the 15 years of learning Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD). The learning process was not...
The United States Army is changing and so must the chaplaincy. At the heart of the ongoing Army transformation is a critical thinking (CT) approach to problem solving and decision-making. Given the many complex choices Army leaders face on a daily...
The U.S. Army's Center of Military History gives today's Soldiers a useful prospective from which to appreciate the past and shape the Army's future. The origin of the Sergeant Major dates back as early as the sixteenth century when the English...
The German General Staff launched Operation Barbarossa in June 1941 assuming the eastern campaign would last only three months. However, within six months after the initiation of hostilities the Red Army blunted the Wehrmacht’s attack outside the...
The United States Army NCO Corps has greatly benefited from Sergeants Major of the Army since 1966 (AUSA). As the first Sergeant Major of the Army, William O. Wooldridge had a great impact on the NCO corps as he determined his roles, duties...
The US Army has a unique leader, the Sergeant Major of the Army that acts as the spokesperson for the enlisted Soldier and recommends solutions to Soldier problems to the Army's Chief of Staff (Bainbridge, 258). The responsibility inherent with the...