Colleen L. McGuire

Brigadier General Colleen L. McGuire is a retired officer of the United States Army. She was the Commanding General of the United States Army Criminal Investigation Command and the 13th Provost Marshal General, the first woman to hold either position. Brigadier General McGuire was also the first woman to be commandant of the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Colleen L. McGuire
AllegianceUnited States
Service/branchUnited States Army
Years of service1979–2011
RankBrigadier General
Commands heldUnited States Army Criminal Investigation Command
United States Disciplinary Barracks
705th Military Police Battalion
Battles/warsIraq War
AwardsLegion of Merit (3)
Bronze Star Medal

Biography

McGuire grew up in Missoula, Montana in a military household as the oldest of six children.[1] Her father served 30 years in the Army Reserves.[1] McGuire graduated from Sentinel High School in 1975.[2] While in high school, she started in the Army Reserves.[1] She attended the University of Montana (UM) in the late 1970s, graduating in 1979.[3][4] McGuire was a radio/television major at UM and a member of the cheerleading squad, the school's Women's Rugby Club, and was a member of the Delta Gamma sorority.[1][5] Also at the university, she was involved in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC).[2] McGuire was a member of the 279th Engineer Company at Fort Missoula through the ROTC Simultaneous Program. At that time her father, William McGuire, was the First Sergeant of the company.[6]

McGuire was commissioned as an officer in the United States Army Military Police Corps in 1979 upon graduation from the University of Montana.[6][7] She first served in Germany with the 709th Military Police Battalion.[6] In 1989, McGuire worked as a staff officer for the Office of the Chief of Public Affairs in The Pentagon.[7] She was deployed to Somalia in 1993 and 1994.[3] McGuire was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in 1996.[4] She became the commander of the 705th Military Police Battalion in Fort Leavenworth in 1998.[6]

When the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth were re-opened in 2002, McGuire became the first woman in charge of the prison.[8][9] She went on to work as the assistant commandant of the United States Army Military Police School.[7] Starting in 2007, McGuire served 18 months as the provost marshal of the multinational corps in Iraq.[1] She is the first woman to serve as a provost marshal in the United States.[7] McGuire was also the senior advisor to the corps commander stationed in Baghdad.[9] In Iraq, she took fire while traveling by convoy and nearly died when a bullet hit her barracks.[10] In 2008, she was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General.[1] Also in 2008, she led the Army Suicide Prevention Task Force.[6]

Brigadier General Colleen McGuire takes oath of office in Washington DC in 2010.

On January 14, 2009, McGuire assumed her last command station.[11] She became the provost marshal general of the Army in January of 2010.[3] As provost marshal general, she took command of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID).[7] She was also the first woman to take command of CID.[7]

In 2012, McGuire retired from the Army.[3] The next year, she started working for Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel to help him study sexual assault in the Army.[3] McGuire also worked as the Executive Director of Delta Gamma Fraternity in Columbus, Ohio.[10] In 2014, she moved to Kalispell, Montana to spend more time with family.[3] McGuire also owns a cattle ranch in Eastern Oregon.[11]

McGuire was awarded the Legion of Merit and a Bronze Star, among other military decorations and awards.[7] In 2010 she was awarded the University of Montana Distinguished Alumni Award.[12] In 2019, McGuire was inducted into the Army Women's Hall of Fame.[13]

References
  1. Kelly, Jamie (2010-02-01). "UM Grad Named 'Top Cop'". The Missoulian. pp. A1. Retrieved 2020-03-11 – via Newspapers.com. and Kelly, Jamie (1996-12-08). "Army". The Missoulian. pp. 6A. Retrieved 2020-03-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. "Colleen L. McGuire". The Missoulian. 1978-07-24. p. 3. Retrieved 2020-03-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Briggeman, Kim (12 January 2020). "Missoula woman reached dizzying heights in the Army". Missoulian. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 2020-03-11.
  4. "Army". The Missoulian. 1996-12-08. p. 47. Retrieved 2020-03-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Candidates Selected for Military Ball". The Missoulian. 1978-01-30. p. 7. Retrieved 2020-03-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. "USACIDC Commanding General". U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command. Archived from the original on 2010-03-02. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  7. Castro, Jeffrey (15 January 2010). "First Woman Becomes Army Provost Marshal General". Archived from the original on 2010-02-24. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  8. Borman, Dawn (2002-09-26). "New Leavenworth Military Prison Unveiled". The Leaf-Chronicle. p. 13. Retrieved 2020-03-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "Saga of Fort Leavenworth Castle". Fort Leavenworth Castle. Archived from the original on 2010-07-09. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  10. Phillips, Jeb. "Ex-general leads fellow women to help vets", The Columbus Dispatch, February 11, 2013. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  11. "Veteran Inducted Into Women's Foundation Hall of Fame". Daily Inter Lake. 8 March 2019. Archived from the original on 7 June 2019. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  12. "UM To Honor Four Distinguished Alums At Homecoming". UM News - The University Of Montana. Retrieved 2020-03-11.
  13. "US Army Women's Hall of Fame Inductees". Army Women's Foundation. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
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