Major General To Speak At Memorial Day Program

It is with great pleasure that I announce our guest speaker for this year’s Memorial Day program will be Major General James E. Simpson, Commanding General, U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, AL.

Gen. Simpson assumed command on Aug. 19, 2015. ACC, a subordinate command of Army Materiel Command, is comprised of two subordinate commands—the U.S. Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command and the U.S. Army Expeditionary Contracting Command—and six major contracting centers. ACC provides global contracting support to war fighters engaged in military operations, weapon system acquisition, life cycle management and sustainment, and acquisition of goods and services vital to the soldier’s mission and well-being. Its workforce includes more than 6,000 military and civilian personnel at more than 100 locations worldwide.

General Simpson was commissioned in 1985 after graduating from Lander University in Greenwood, SC, as an ROTC distinguished military graduate, earning a bachelor’s degree in Political Science. He has a master’s in Public Administration from Central Michigan University and a master’s in National Resource Strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. He also earned a master’s in Business Administration from the University of Texas at Arlington, a certificate in Management from the Darden School of Business, University of Virginia; and a master’s certificate in Government Contract Management from George Washington University. His military education includes the Air Defense Artillery Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, Combined Arms Services Staff School, Training with Industry, Command and General Staff College, and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. Gen. Simpson is Level III certified in contracting and Level II certified in program management. Prior to assuming command of ACC, he was the Director of Contracting and the Deputy to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Procurement.

General Simpson’s command and staff assignments include: Commander, U.S. Central Command Joint Theater Support Contracting Command, Afghanistan; Deputy Chief of Contracting Management, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, DC; Senior Contracting Official-Iraq, Joint Theater Support Contracting Command, CENTCOM, Operation New Dawn, Iraq; Chief of Staff, ACC, Fort Belvoir, VA; Commander, Contracting Center of Excellence, AMC, Alexandria, VA; Executive Officer, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army (Policy and Procurement), Pentagon; Deputy Project Manager, Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical and Biological Defense, Falls Church, VA; Commander, Defense Contract Management Agency, Central Pennsylvania, York, PA and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Iraq; Assignment Officer, Army Acquisition Corps, U.S. Total Army Personnel Command, Alexandria; Chief, Osan Contracting Branch, ACC Korea, 8th U.S Army, Korea; Contingency Contracting Officer, 101st Support Group (Corps), 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, KY; Commander, A Battery, 2d Battalion, 44th Air Defense Artillery, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, KY.

His awards and decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (3 OLC), Bronze Star (1 OLC), Defense Meritorious Service Medal (2 OLC), Meritorious Service Medal (3 OLC), Army Commendation Medal (1 OLC), Army Achievement Medal (5 OLC), the Parachute and Air Assault Badges, and the Army Staff Identification Badge. Additionally, he was awarded the Secretary of the Army Excellence in Contracting Award for Outstanding Contracting Officer (Military) at Installation-Level Satellite for fiscal year 1999. In fiscal year 2006 he received the Acquisition Commander of the Year Award at the Lieutenant Colonel level.

Our program will be held on Monday, May 29 at 11:00 a.m. at the Limestone County Event Center, across from the museum at 100 W. Pryor St., Athens, AL. Please join us for refreshments following the program.
By: Sandra Thompson, Director, Alabama Veteran’s Museum