Paul J. Kern

Last updated

Paul J. Kern
PaulKern.jpg
General Paul John Kern
Born (1945-06-16) June 16, 1945 (age 78)
New Jersey, United States
AllegianceUnited States
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service1967–2005
Rank General
Commands held United States Army Materiel Command
4th Infantry Division
2nd Brigade, 24th Infantry Division
5th Battalion, 32nd Armor Regiment
Battles/wars Vietnam War
Gulf War
Awards Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Army Distinguished Service Medal
Silver Star
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit (2)
Bronze Star Medal (5)
Purple Heart (3)
Alma mater University of Michigan
Other workBoard of Directors, EDO Corporation

Paul John Kern (born June 16, 1945) is a retired United States Army general and businessman. He served as Commanding General of the United States Army Materiel Command from October 2001 to November 2004. He became President and Chief Operating Officer of AM General LLC on August 1, 2008.

Contents

Military service

Kern is a native of West Orange, New Jersey, and attended West Orange High School in his hometown. [1] He was commissioned in 1967 as an Armor officer following graduation from the United States Military Academy. In 1973 he earned master's degrees in both mechanical and civil engineering from the University of Michigan.

Kern served two tours in Vietnam with the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment as a platoon leader and troop commander, and was a battalion operations officer with the 3rd Armored Division in Germany. He also commanded the 5th Battalion, 32nd Armor, 24th Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, Georgia; commanded the 2nd Brigade, 24th Infantry Division at Fort Stewart and during Desert Shield/Desert Storm; and was the Assistant Division Commander of the 24th Infantry Division after redeployment to Fort Stewart.

Kern also served as the Commander, 4th Infantry Division (Mechanized). He was also the senior military assistant to the Secretary of Defense and Deputy Secretary of Defense; military staff assistant, Defense Research and Engineering for Test and Evaluation, Office of the Secretary of Defense; and Director of Requirements (Support Systems), Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans. Kern also served as Team Chief, Light Combat Vehicle Team, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Research, Development and Acquisition, and as the Program Branch Chief, Bradley Fighting Vehicle Systems, Warren, Michigan. He taught weapon systems and automotive engineering at the United States Military Academy and was the department's research officer.

In June 2004 Kern was chosen to head the internal military investigation of the Abu Ghraib torture scandal, also referred to as the Fay Report. [2]

Awards and decorations

Kern's awards and decorations include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Army Distinguished Service Medal, Silver Star, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (with oak leaf cluster), Bronze Star Medal (with Valor device and oak leaf cluster), Bronze Star Medal (with two oak leaf clusters), Purple Heart (with two oak leaf clusters), Meritorious Service Medal (with four oak leaf clusters), Army Commendation Medal, Parachutist Badge, and Ranger Tab.

Post-military life

After retiring from the army in January 2005, Kern joined the Board of Directors of Agent Science Technologies, [3] EDO Corporation [4] and iRobot Corporation, [5] and is a member of the External Advisory Board of the University of Michigan Department of Mechanical Engineering, and a Senior Counselor of The Cohen Group. [2]

In 2007, Kern was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering for bringing modern digitization technology to bear on military effectiveness, training, and procurement. [6]

Kern now serves as the Chair of Advanced Technology in the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the United States Military Academy. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John R. Vines</span> United States Army general

Lieutenant General John Randolph Vines is the former commander of the U.S. Army's XVIII Airborne Corps and Multi-National Corps – Iraq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William J. Lennox Jr.</span> United States Army general

Lieutenant General William James Lennox Jr. of Houston, Texas, was the 56th Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York from 2001 to 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas F. Metz</span> Lieutenant General in the United States Army

Thomas Fredric Metz is a retired lieutenant general in the United States Army. Metz retired from the Army in Jan 2010 after more than 40 years of active military service. His tour of duty prior to retirement was as the director, Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization., leading the DOD organization tasked with finding and fielding ways to defeat the IED threat. Previously he was the deputy commanding general and chief of staff, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. Previous to that assignment he was commanding general of the U.S. III Corps and Fort Hood. He assumed command of III Corps on 7 February 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franklin L. Hagenbeck</span> US Army general

Lieutenant General Franklin Lee Hagenbeck is a retired United States Army officer who served as the 57th Superintendent of the United States Military Academy from June 2006 to July 2010. Previous to his assignment at West Point, he was the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1 United States Army, Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph R. Inge</span> United States Army general (1947–2023)

Lieutenant General Joseph Richard Inge was an officer of the United States Army. He served as Deputy Commander, United States Northern Command, and Vice Commander, United States Element, North American Aerospace Defense Command, headquartered at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado in 2007. He retired in 2007, after a 38-year career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fred D. Robinson Jr.</span> United States Army general

Major General Fred "Doug" Robinson Jr. a native of Bolivar, Tennessee, was commissioned a second lieutenant in the United States Army from the University of Tennessee. As of 2007, he was commanding general of Army Research, Development and Engineering Command in the United States Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William H. Brandenburg</span>

William H. Brandenburg is a retired major general in the United States Army. He last served as deputy commanding general, U.S. Army, Pacific, August 8, 2003. Prior to his last assignment, he was deputy commanding general for training and readiness, I Corps and Fort Lewis. From November 29, 2004, until December 1, 2005, he deployed to Iraq as deputy commanding general and commanding general, Task Force 134.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R. Steven Whitcomb</span> United States Army general

R. Steven Whitcomb is a retired United States Army lieutenant general. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant upon graduation from the University of Virginia in 1970. In his final assignment he served as Inspector General of the United States Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William G. T. Tuttle Jr.</span> United States Army general (1935–2020)

General William Gilbert Townsend Tuttle Jr. was a United States Army four-star general who served as Commanding General, United States Army Materiel Command from 1989 to 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larry R. Ellis</span> United States Army general

Larry Rudell Ellis is a former United States Army officer who served as the Commander of United States Army Forces Command from November 19, 2001 until 2004, following his assignment as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans of the Department of the Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederick F. Woerner Jr.</span> United States Army general (1933–2023)

Frederick Frank Woerner Jr. was a four-star general of the United States Army, Commander-in-Chief of United States Southern Command, Chairman of the American Battle Monuments Commission, and professor at Boston University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William A. Knowlton</span> United States Army general

General William Allen Knowlton was a United States Army four-star general, and a former Superintendent of the United States Military Academy. As a full general, he served as Commander, Allied Land Forces South East Europe, and as the United States Military Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Spigelmire</span> United States Army general

Michael Spigelmire is a retired American lieutenant general.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David A. Bramlett</span> United States Army general

David Anthony Bramlett is a retired United States Army four-star general who commanded United States Army Forces Command from July 1, 1996 to August 31, 1998, after serving as Deputy Commander in Chief and Chief of Staff, United States Pacific Command at Camp H. M. Smith, Hawaii. During his tenure as Deputy Commander, he was the interim commander of Pacific Command after the commander, Admiral Richard C. Macke, came under fire for comments he had made in regard to the 1995 rape scandal in Okinawa that involved three United States servicemen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John J. Hennessey</span> United States Army general

John Joseph Timothy Hennessey was a United States Army four-star general who served as Commander in Chief, United States Readiness Command (USCINCRED) from 1974 to 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam S. Walker</span> United States Army general

Sam Sims Walker was a United States Army general who served as the Commanding General of Allied Land Forces, South East Europe from 1977 to 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter F. Ulmer</span> United States Army general

Walter Francis Ulmer Jr. is a retired lieutenant general in the United States Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard G. Graves</span> United States Army general

Richard Gordon Graves is a retired lieutenant general in the United States Army. He was Commander of III Corps and Fort Hood. He is a 1958 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederic J. Brown III</span> U.S. Army lieutenant general]

Frederic J. Brown III is a retired United States Army officer. A veteran of the Vietnam War, he attained the rank of lieutenant general and was a recipient of the Army Distinguished Service Medal (2), Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, and multiple awards of the Bronze Star Medal. Brown is best known for his service as Chief of Armor and Cavalry from 1983 to 1986 and command of Fourth United States Army from 1986 to 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul T. Mikolashek</span> United States Army lieutenant general

Paul T. Mikolashek is a retired United States Army officer. A veteran of the Vietnam War, he served from 1969 to 2005 and was Inspector General of the United States Army from 2002 to 2005. Mikolashek attained the rank of lieutenant general, and his awards and decorations included the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (2), Bronze Star Medal (2), Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Master Parachutist Badge, Combat Infantryman Badge, Ranger tab, Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge, and Army Staff Identification Badge.

References

  1. "Major Army Command Says Farewell to Four-Star Commander" Archived November 29, 2007, at the Wayback Machine , United States Army Materiel Command press release. Accessed November 19, 2007.
  2. 1 2 University of Michigan bio Archived September 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  3. "Unmanned Systems in Overseas Contingency Operations" (PDF). National Defense University Center for Technology and National Security Policy: 16. May 10, 2012 via Eth Zürich.
  4. "Paul Kern, Director". ww1.edocorp.com. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  5. "IRobot Corporation: Board Members". Archived from the original on December 18, 2008. Retrieved November 18, 2008.
  6. "General Paul J. Kern". United States National Academy of Engineering. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  7. [ permanent dead link ]

PD-icon.svg This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Army.