JMU DUKE BATTALION FOUNDATION - Click here for more information
** ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT ** JMU Commissioning Class of 1988
The Military Science Department (MSCI) has a rich history at James Madison University. The "Duke Battalion" has been preparing our Nation's future Army Officers and military leaders since 1974 as a partner detachment with the University of Virginia then independently as a host battalion since September 12, 1979.
Contact us at (540) 568-6264 or email us at rotc@jmu.edu
Physical Address: 395 South Main Street, Memorial Hall, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA 22801
Mailing Address: Department of Military Science, James Madison University, 800 S. Main St., MSC 6904, Harrisonburg, Va. 22807
Annual Giving: Gifts designated to the Military Science Foundation Account. A gift of $1,000 will qualify you as a member of JMU's premier giving society The President's Council. However, gifts of ANY amount are welcome! These gifts have a direct and immediate impact on Cadets, Military Science Faculty, and Cadet organizations within the Duke Battalion.
Planned Giving: You may wish to include JMU in your estate and use these funds to honor a military Officer, the Military Science Department, a Cadet organization, or the legacy you have created during your life's work in the service to our Nation as an Army leader. These gifts can be used to create a specific endowment or simply supply general funds for the MSCI Department.
Major, Corporate, And Foundation Giving: A gift of $25,000 or more will allow for the creation of an endowment for JMU's Military Science Department. You may choose to create a scholarship to support our Cadets or a Department support endowment that allows for Military Leadership Development Projects that will continue to advance the leader development of our Army Officer Corps. There are a variety of special initiatives that can also be discussed with the Professor of Military Science or our Development Representative. These endowments, once established, will exist in perpetuity and have a lasting impact on Madison Army Reserve Officer Training Corps Cadets for years to come.
We love to hear from past JMU Army ROTC alumni. Please consider contacting us with any information about where you've been, what you've done, and where you're currently serving so we can highlight not only your success, but what the JMU Nation has produced over the years in service to our nation.
ALUMNI
Lieutenant General Raymond V. Mason
LTG Raymond V. Mason assumed duties as the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-4 on November 3, 2011. He oversees the policies and procedures used by a quarter million U.S. Army logisticians throughout the world. He served as the Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff, G-4 (Operations) from July-November 2011.
Before joining the Army staff, LTG Mason served as the G-4, United States Army Forces Command (FORSCOM) from August 2009 - June 2011. He directed logistics support to the Army's largest command and was responsible for the readiness of more than eighty percent of the Army's operational forces. He oversaw the sustainment, equipping, training, mobilizing, and deployment of forces to the COCOMs and worldwide contingencies.
LTG Mason's other key command and staff assignments include: CG, 8th Theater Sustainment Command, Fort Shafter, Hawaii; CG, 19th Support Command (Expeditionary), Daegu, Republic of Korea; CG, Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, Defense Logistics Agency; CG, Army Materiel Command (Theater) Southwest Asia, and C-4, Operational Sustainment, Coalition Forces Land Component Command, Central Command, providing logistics support to U.S. forces operating in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Djibouti, and across the ARCENT Area of Responsibility.
LTG Mason served as the Commander, 25th Infantry Division Division Support Command; Commander, 407th Forward Support Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division; Commander, E Co (Rigger), 407th Service and Support Battalion, 82d Airborne Division; and Commander, Services Company, 21 Supply Battalion (Australian Army Exchange), Sydney, Australia.
LTG Mason completed his undergraduate studies at James Madison University as a Distinguished Military Graduate with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Marketing and Management and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Quartermaster Corps in December 1978. He is a graduate of the Quartermaster Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, the Command and General Staff College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. He received a Master of Science Degree in Procurement/Contract Management from Florida Institute of Technology and a Master of Science Degree in National Resource Strategy from the National Defense University.
LTG Mason's awards and decorations include the Army Distinguished Service Medal (1 Oak Leaf Cluster), Defense Superior Service Medal (1 Oak Leaf Cluster), Legion of Merit (2 Oak Leaf Clusters), Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (5 Oak Leaf Clusters), Army Commendation Medal (3 Oak Leaf Clusters), Army Achievement Medal (1 Oak Leaf Cluster), Master Parachutist Badge, Parachutist Rigger Badge, Australian Jump Wings, Joint Chiefs of Staff Identification Badge and the Army Staff Identification Badge.
He is married to the former Patti Kay Harris of Williamsburg, Va. They have two children, Nick, who lives in Denver, CO, and Sarah, who lives in Arlington, VA.
Brigadier General Randal A. Dragon
Brig. Gen. Randal A. Dragon assumed duties as the Commanding General, Brigade Modernization Command on July 28, 2011.
Dragon holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from James Madison University, a Master's degree in Systems Technology from the Naval Postgraduate
He next served as an Operations Analyst, Joint Forces Command, Norfolk, Va.; then as G3 Operations, 1st Cavalry Division; Battalion Executive Officer for 2-5 Cavalry, Brigade S3 in 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.; the Aide de Camp to the Comanding General, Forces Command, Atlanta, Ga. He then commanded 1-26 Infantry Battalion, 1st Infantry Division, Schweinfurt, Germany from 1997 to 1999 which included deployments to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in support of Operation Able Sentry and later to Kosovo in support of Operation Joint Guardian.
Dragon then served as the Infantry Task Force Observer/Controller, Combat Maneuver Training Center, Hohenfels, Germany; followed by an assignment as the Deputy G3, V Corps, Heidelberg, Germany. He commanded the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Schweinfurt, Germany from 2002 to 2005 including deployments to Kosovo in support of Operation Joint Guardian and to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. His next assignment was as the C3, Multinational Corps-Iraq, Baghdad, Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom, and as the G3, V Corps, Heidelberg, Germany. He commanded the Operations Group at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin, Calif., from 2007 to 2009. Prior to his arrival to the Brigade Modernization Command, he assumed duties as a Deputy Commanding General for the 1st Infantry Division at Fort Riley, Kan., and recently returned in January 2011 after serving as the Deputy Commanding General, US Division-South for Operation Iraqi Freedom/New Dawn.
Colonel Laurie G. Moe Buckhout
Colonel Buckhout was assigned as the Chief, Electronic Warfare Division, Army Operations, Readiness and Mobilization (HQDA G3/5/7), Washington, DC in June 2006.
Colonel Laurie G. Moe Buckhout was commissioned in 1984 from James Madison University with a Bachelor's Degree in English. She is the daughter of a retired Infantry Colonel and a former Army Air Corps Lieutenant. She was commissioned as a Signal Officer and served her first tour in Germany as a Platoon Leader, Adjutant and Company Executive Officer for the 51st Signal Battalion, 93d Signal Brigade (Corps).
After completing the Signal Advanced Course, she returned to Germany to serve with the 3d Infantry Division as an Assistant S3, the 102d Signal Battalion as a Company Commander and S4, and the 22d Signal Brigade as the Assistant Engineering Officer. COL Buckhout was then selected to serve with the White House Communications Agency as a Presidential Communications Officer before attending the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth.
Following CGSC, she served as an Assignment Officer for Signal Field Grade officers at DA PERSCOM (now Army Human Resources Command) and then as a Battalion XO with the 86th Signal Battalion, 11th Signal Brigade at Fort Huachuca, Arizona. COL Buckhout then served as the Executive Assistant to the Commanding General, U.S. NETCOM (then U.S. Army Signal Command). From there, she and her family moved to Germany where she was the Deputy Brigade Commander, 22d Signal Brigade (Corps), and then Battalion Commander, 32d Signal Battalion, Darmstadt, Germany.
COL Buckhout served for two years as a Battalion Commander, deploying over 600 of her soldiers unit to Iraq for a year where they supported the CJTF-7 throughout the theater, but primarily in the Sunni Triangle north of Baghdad. Following command, she was assigned for two years to the Joint Staff, J6. COL Buckhout is now on the Army Staff as the Division Chief of the Army G-3's new Electronic Warfare Division.
COL Buckhout has Master's Degrees in Information Systems Management, and Military Arts and Sciences with a concentration in Military History. She has earned the Bronze Star, DMSM with OLC, MSM with three OLC, JCOM, ARCOM with OLC, JSAM, AAM with two OLC, permanent orders of the Army Meritorious Unit Citation and the Presidential Unit Citation, and various service medals. She also wears the Joint Staff Badge, Army Staff Badge, Presidential Service Badge and Parachutist's Badge.
Colonel Timothy K. Buennemeyer
Colonel Timothy K. Buennemeyer, United States Army, is the commander of the United States Army Command and Control Support Agency (USACCSA). USACCSA provides Information Technology (IT) support to the HQDA G-3/5/7, Command and Control (C2) communications support to the Army's senior leadership, and C2 Information Systems support to the Army Operations Center and Army activities with Army-wide responsibilities.
COL Buennemeyer's military career began in 1985 when he commissioned into the United States Army. He entered active duty as an Infantryman after graduating from James Madison University with a B.B.A. in Management. He received his Masters in Computer Resources Information Management from Webster University in 1998, and he earned his PH.D. in Computer Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 2008. His military education includes Airborne School, Infantry Office Basic and Advanced Courses, Ranger School, Jump Master Course, Pathfinder Course, Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle Course, Systems Automation Course, Combined Arms Service Staff School, Command General Staff College, Joint Service Staff College, and he is a Senior Service College selectee for 2009.
COL Buennemeyer served in a variety of command, troop and staff office positions. He led and worked with frontline airborne and infantry troops at Ft. Bragg, N.C., Aschaffenburg, Germany and in Southwest Asia during Desert Storm. His assignments include: Rifle Platoon Leader and Company Executive Office 3-504th Parachute Infantry Regiment; Company Executive Officer, HHC 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, Ft. Bragg, N.C.; Battalion S-1 and Commander, C Company, 4-7th Infantry Regiment, Aschaffenburg, Germany; Chief, Information Management Branch and Chief, Network in Information Systems Command, Washington, DC; Chief, C2 Integration, U.S. Army Special Operations Command; G-3 Operations Officer, XVIII Airborne Infantry Regiment, Ft. Bragg, N.C.; Chief, Network Defense (J652) and Chief, Computer Network Defense and Information Assurance Division (J65), U.S. Pacific Command, Camp Smith, Hawaii.
COL Buennemeyer's military awards include Bronze Star Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal w/ 2 Oak Leaf Clusters, Army Commendation Medal w/ 4 Oak Leaf Clusters, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Army Achievement Medal w/ 4 Oak Leaf Clusters, Joint Meritorious Unit Award w/ 2 Oak Leaf Clusters, Valorous Unit Award, Army Medal w/ 3 Bronze Stars, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait Liberation Medals, Combat Infantryman's Badge, Expert Infantryman's Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Pathfinder Badge, and Ranger Tab.
COL Buennemeyer's Civilian and National Awards include the George C. Marshall Leadership Award, Hawaii Chapter 2004 AFCEAN of the Year, and the National Security Agency's 2003-04 Frank B. Rowlett Information Assurance Individual Excellence Award.
Brigadier General Matt McFarlane
BG Matt McFarlane is a native of Burke, VA and was commissioned in the Infantry upon graduation from James Madison University in 1992. Following his commission, he was assigned to 2-5 Cavalry at Fort Hood, Texas where he served as a Bradley Platoon Leader and Company Executive Officer. In January 1995, he was assigned to the 2nd Ranger Battalion in Ft. Lewis, Washington where he served as a Rifle Platoon Leader. In March 1997, he was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, N.C. where he served as a G3 Training Office, Brigade Assistant Operations Officer, and the Company Commander of A Company, 2-505 PIR. He then served in the 1st Ranger Battalion at Hunter Army Airfield as the S3 Air and S4, where he deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
BG McFarlane returned to 2nd Ranger Battalion in 2003 and served as the Battalion LNO, Operations Officer and Executive Officer where he deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq multiple times. Following his assignment at Ft. Lewis, he served as the Aide-de-Camp to the Secretary of the Army in Washington D.C. In September 2008, he assumed command of the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 503rd Infantry in Vicenza, Italy.
A graduate of the Infantry Office Basic and Advanced Courses at Ft. Benning, GA,BG McFarlane also attended the Command and General Staff College at Ft. Leavenworth, KS. He holds a B.A. of Business Administration Degree and Master Degrees in Management and Policy Management. He is an Army Ranger, Master Parachutist, Combat Infantryman, and, among other decorations, war awarded the Bronze Star.
Colonel Madalyn S. (Kelly) Gainey
COL Madalyn S. Gainey was commissioned at James Madison University in July 1992 in the Quartermaster Corps and earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Computer Information Systems. She also holds a Master of Arts in Human Resources Management from Webster University, and a Master of Science degree in Criminal Justice from Florida State University. Her military education includes the Army War College Fellow at the United States Institute of Peace, Command and General Staff College, Public Affairs Officers Course, Combined Logistics Officer's Advanced Course and the Quartermaster Officer Basic Course.
COL Gainey's initial assignment was with the 493d Supply and Services Company (DS), 68th Corps Support Battalion, Fort Carson, Colorado, from 1994-1997. While in the "Stagecoach" Battalion, she served in various leadership positions to include CIF Supply Platoon Leader, Battalion Adjutant and Assistant S3. COL Gainey's next assignment was at Fort Lewis, Washington, where she served as the 1st Personnel Group Brigade S4 and Headquarters and Headquarters Company Commander. Following that assignment, COL Gainey was selected as an Army Intern at the Defense Logistics Agency, Fort Belvoir, Virginia. She served as a Public Affairs Officer in several assignments in the National Capitol Region to include the Defense Intelligence Agency and Army Human Resources Command, Alexandria, Virginia. In 2010, COL Gainey was assigned as the Division Public Affairs Officer with the 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kansas. Following her assignment, she was selected as the Public Affairs Officer to the Vice Chief of Staff, Army from 2012-2014. COL Gainey was then selected as an Army War College Fellow at the United States Institute of Peace, Washington, D.C., with a follow on assignment as the I Corps Public Affairs Officer at Joint Base Lewis McChord, WA. She is now serving as the Strategic Communications Director for Arlington National Military Cemeteries.
COL Gainey has two combat deployments, Mogadishu, Somalia and Basra, Iraq. She also has Peacekeeping operational experience from a tour in Bosnia-Herzegovina as a part of the NATO stabilization Force (SFOR).
Her awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (6thOLC), Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal (1OLC), Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal (1OLC), and the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (1OLC). She has also earned the Parachutist Badge.
COL Gainey is married to COL Andrew Gainey of Columbia, South Carolina. They have three children: Brooke, Princess and Chanele.
Colonel (Retired) Patrick Kerr
Colonel (Retired) Patrick Kerr had a distinguished 27-year career with the United States Army and served most recently as the Army Mission Partner Engagement Officer for the Defense Information Systems Agency from 2015-2017, where he was responsible for the development of information technology requirements and support to the operational Army.
Patrick received his commission through ROTC at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia where he graduated in 1990 with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. He also holds a Master of Business Administration from Webster University and a Master of National Security Strategy from National War College, National Defense University.
A career signal corps officer, Patrick was assigned as the Commander, Information Systems Engineering Command (ISEC), Fort Huachuca, Arizona. He also served as the Executive Assistant to the Director, Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA). Prior to his tour to DISA, Patrick served as the Commander, 53rd Signal Battalion (SATCON), Colorado Springs, Colorado.
In addition, Patrick served in key leadership positions that included Branch Chief J633 / Current Operations, United States Northern Command and as the Chief of Operations, 5th Signal Command, Mannheim, Germany. His operational deployments: Operations Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), Joint Endeavor (Bosnia), Restore Hope (Somalia) and Provide Comfort II (Kuwait).
His military awards and decorations include: the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (two awards), Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medal (three awards) and the Meritorious Service Medal (three awards). He is authorized to wear the Joint Staff Identification Badge, the United States Air Force Space Badge (Basic) and is a recipient of the Signal Corps Regimental Association’s Silver Order of Mercury.
The Duke Battalion has produced several other noteworthy alumni, which include:
Major General (Retired) Herbert L. Altshuler
Major General John B. Morrison, Commanding General, NETCOM
Colonel Michael E. Brown, Commander US Military Group - Columbia
Colonel (USAR) Charles T. May, Jr., Special Agent in Charge, Carolina Field Office, NCIS
Colonel William F. Schiek, Deputy Chief of Staff, USAMEDCOM
Colonel Zachariah Wheeler, Assistant Commander of Force Integration, AMEDD
Colonel Robert L. Bailes, Field Artillery Branch Chief, Enlisted Personnel Management
Directorate, U.S. Army Human Resources Command
