Ricky D. Gibbs

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Rick Gibbs
BG Ricky Gibbs.jpg
Gibbs while deputy commander of V Corps in 2011
Birth nameRicky Dan Gibbs [1]
Born1960 (age 64–65)
Austin, Texas, US
Service United States Army
Years of service1982–2013
Rank Brigadier General
Unit U.S. Army Infantry Branch
Commands
Wars Gulf War
Iraq War
Awards Bronze Star Medal (4)
Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Meritorious Service Medal (7)
Complete List
Alma mater University of Texas at Arlington
Troy State University
United States Army Command and General Staff College
United States Army War College
Spouse
Nolly Chess
​
(m. 1987)​
[2] [3]
Children2 [3]
Other workStrategic planning consultant

Rick Gibbs (born 1960) is a retired United States Army officer. A 1982 graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington, he served from 1982 until 2013 and attained the rank of brigadier general. He served in both the Gulf War and Iraq War, and his awards included four awards of the Bronze Star Medal, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, and seven awards of the Meritorious Service Medal. Gibbs' command assignments included: Company C, 2nd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment; Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division; 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment; 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division; and V Corps.

Contents

A native of Austin, Texas, Gibbs was raised on army bases as his family traveled for his stepfather's military career. He graduated from Fort Campbell High School in 1978, then attended the University of Texas at Arlington, from which he graduated in 1982. He later earned a master's degree from Troy State University. Gibbs participated in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps while in college, and after graduating he received his commission as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Infantry Branch. He completed professional education including Airborne School, Ranger School, Air Assault School, Jumpmaster School, Pathfinder School, and the Reconnaissance and Surveillance Leaders Course.

Gibbs carried out staff and command assignments of increasing rank and responsibility during his career, including deployment for the Gulf War and the Iraq War. His command postings included a battalion and a brigade. While serving as deputy commander of V Corps beginning in 2011, he also served for several months as the acting corps commander. Gibbs retired as a brigadier general in 2013. In retirement, he resided in Harker Heights, Texas and operated a strategic planning and consulting business, RDG Consulting.

Early life

Ricky D. Gibbs was born in Austin, Texas in 1960, a son of Billy (or Billie) Park Gibbs and Dorothy Jean McVey. [1] [2] His mother later married United States Army noncommissioned officer David Marks; Gibbs was raised and educated on army bases, and he graduated from Fort Campbell High School in 1978. [4] [5] He played football for Fort Campbell High and in 2013 he was inducted into the school's Marshall Patterson Athletic Hall of Fame. [4] He attended the University of Texas at Arlington from 1978 to 1982, where he was a member of the corps of cadets and commanded the corps during his senior year. [4] He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Education and subsequently earned a Master of Science degree in Management from Troy State University. [4] [6] In 2011, The University of Texas at Arlington inducted Gibbs into its Military Science Hall of Honor. [7]

Start of career

While in college, Gibbs participated in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps, which he completed as a Distinguished Military Graduate. [4] After graduating, he received his commission in the United States Army as a second lieutenant of Infantry. [4] His initial assignments included rifle platoon leader, scout platoon leader, and company executive officer with 3rd Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment in Germany. [4] [8] After returning to the United States, he served at Fort Benning, Georgia as a rifle platoon leader with 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment and branch chief of the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade's Long Range Surveillance School. [4]

Military education

Gibbs' professional education includes: [6] [9]

Continued career

Following graduation from the Infantry Officer Advanced Course, Gibbs was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where he commanded Company C, 2nd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, served as a brigade assistant operations officer (Assistant S-3), and was assigned as aide-de-camp to the division commander during the Gulf War. [4] [10] Gibbs also commanded Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division. [10]

After Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Gibbs was assigned as chief of personnel and training for the Combat Training Center Directorate at Fort Leavenworth's, Combined Arms Command. [6] After completing the course at the United States Army Command and General Staff College, he was assigned as a battalion operations officer (S-3) for a unit of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. [6] In August 1995, he was assigned to the operations staff (G-3) of the XVIII Airborne Corps as chief of joint exercises for United States Atlantic Command. [6] From July 1996 to May 1998, he served as aide-de-camp to the commanding general of Fifth U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. [6] He later served on the Joint Staff as a joint ground maneuver program analyst in the Land and Littoral Warfare Assessment Division. [6]

Later career

Gibbs next served as commander of 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 101st Airborne Division. [6] His next posting was to the division staff as deputy chief of staff for operations (G-3), which included deployment to Iraq during the Iraq War. [6] He then attended the United States Army War College, after which he was assigned as a strategic planner for the army staff. [6] This was followed by postings as director of the army staff's Office of Institutional Army Adaptation and chief of its Army Initiatives Group. [6]

From July 2005 to February 2007, Gibbs commanded 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, including combat in Iraq during the Baghdad troop surge. [3] He served as the 1st ID's chief of staff from February 2007 to June 2009, when he was assigned as assistant division commander for maneuver. [3] Gibbs was promoted to brigadier general in December 2009. [3] From 2011 until retiring in 2013, Gibbs was assigned as deputy commander of V Corps, and he was the acting corps commander from June 2011 to January 2012. [8]

After his military retirement, Gibbs became a resident of Harker Heights, Texas and operated a strategic planning and consulting firm, RDG Consulting. [11] [12] Among his projects was a 2016 report on the impact proposed force reductions at Fort Hood would have on the city of Killeen, Texas. [12]

Awards

Gibbs' awards include: [4] [6]

Additional honors

In May 2002, Gibbs received the Order of Saint Maurice (Centurion) from the National Infantry Association. [13]

References

  1. 1 2 "Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997, Entry for Ricky Dan Gibbs" . Ancestry.com. Lehi, Utah: Ancestry.com. 1960. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Public Ledger: Marriage Licenses; Columbus". Columbus Ledger . Columbus, Georgia. 26 February 1987. p. A-10 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Newman, Anna R. (5 December 2009). "Big Red One officer receives first star". Army.mil. Arlington, Virginia: Office of US Army Public Affairs. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Rogers, Tom (11 August 2013). "Antonio Andrews and Micah Johnson Headline Fort Campbell Hall of Fame Class". Your Sports Edge.com. Cadiz, Kentucky.
  5. ↑ Ferguson, Mary D. (30 May 1978). "112 To Graduate At Fort Campbell". Kentucky New Era . Hopkinsville, Kentucky. p. 29 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Biography, BG (Ret) Ricky D. Gibbs". Cadet Corps Alumni Council. Arlington, Texas: University of Texas at Arlington Alumni Association. 2009. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  7. ↑ "Hall of Honor Adds Distinguished Cadets" (PDF). UTArlington Magazine. Arlington, Texas: University of Texas at Arlington. Spring 2011. p. 36.
  8. 1 2 Weisel, Karl (12 August 2011). "Uncasing ceremony welcomes V Corps back to Hessen". Army.mil. Arlington, Virginia: Office of US Army Public Affairs. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  9. ↑ "New AWCF Life Members" (PDF). Army War College Foundation and Alumni News. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Army War College Foundation. Fall 2017. p. 8.
  10. 1 2 Williams, Kim (31 August 2006). "Air assault class hosts Campbell veteran". Fort Campbell Courier. Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  11. ↑ Killeen City Council (24 November 2015). "City Council Memorandum; Agenda Item; Fort Hood Force Reduction Assessment". killeen.legistar.com. Kileen, Texas: City of Killeen. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  12. 1 2 Gibbs, Ricky D. (15 June 2016). "Force Reduction Assessment Final Report" (PDF). Kileen Chamber.com. Kileen, Texas: Kileen Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  13. ↑ "Award Recipients" (PDF). Infantry Association.org. Columbus, Georgia: National Infantry Association. 2018. p. 126.
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