kids encyclopedia robot

United States Army Combined Arms Center facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
United States Army Combined Arms Center
U.S. Army Combined Arms Center Shield.png
USACAC Shoulder Sleeve Insignia
Active 1973–present
Country  United States
Branch  United States Army
Role Provides leadership and supervision for leader development and professional military and civilian education.
Size 2,000+
Part of 16 major schools and centers.
Garrison/HQ Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Motto(s) "Ad Bellum Pace Parati" (Latin)
"Prepared in peace for war"
Commanders
Current
commander
LTG Theodore D. Martin
Insignia
Flag
Flag of the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center.jpg

The U.S. Army Combined Arms Center (USACAC) is located at Fort Leavenworth and provides leadership and supervision for leader development and professional military and civilian education; institutional and collective training; functional training; training support; battle command; doctrine; lessons learned and specified areas the Commanding General, United States Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) designates in order to serve as a catalyst for change and to support developing relevant and ready expeditionary land formations with campaign qualities in support of the joint force commander.

Components

Components (all based in Fort Leavenworth) are:

  • The Army University, which was created in 2015 and charged with directly integrating 70 separate U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) internal school programs under one university system while also synchronizing instruction with more than 100 additional TRADOC institutions.
    • Subcomponents include the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (the Army's graduate school and the center's most famous institution)
    • Army University Press, which includes the former Combat Studies Institute and publishes Military Review, NCO Journal and the Journal of Military Learning.
  • Combined Arms Center for Training
    • Mission Command Training Program
    • National Simulations Center
  • Mission Command Center of Excellence
    • Battle Command Knowledge System
    • U.S. Army Information Operations Proponent
    • Current Force Integration Directorate
    • TRADOC Program Integration Office-Battle Command
    • Center for Army Lessons Learned
    • Combined Arms Doctrine Directorate
    • Center for Army Leadership

Components (based in Fort Rucker) are:

  • U.S. Army Warrant Officer Career College

Overview

Fort Leavenworth, Kansas is the oldest continuously operating Regular Army installation west of the Mississippi River. This historic post, noted for its campus setting, open green spaces and hometown character, is the home of the US Army's Combined Arms Center (CAC). CAC, as a major subordinate headquarters of the US Army Training and Doctrine Command, has often been referred to as the "Intellectual Center of the Army". It is, in many regards, "home base" for the majority of field grade officers across the Army.

Since 1882, CAC and its predecessor organizations have been engaged in the primary mission of preparing the Army and its leaders for war. At present, this mission is divided between preparing the Army for the Global War on Terrorism and transforming it to meet future threats.

In order to accomplish these critical missions, CAC provides Army-wide leadership and supervision for leader development and professional military and civilian education; institutional and collective training; functional training; training support; battle command; doctrine; lessons learned; and other specified areas that the TRADOC Commander designates. All of these are focused toward making CAC a catalyst for change and to support the development of a relevant and ready ground force to support joint, interagency and multinational operations anywhere in the world.

Organizational structure

Clocktower-Sherman-Grant-SheridanHalls Nov-2002 0056
Grant Hall is the headquarters of the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center.

The Combined Arms Center is organized along four basic levels:

The commander exercises overall responsibility over assigned personnel and subordinate organizations to ensure that assigned missions are accomplished in the most efficient and effective manner possible. The Command Sergeant Major, by tradition, is responsible for the conduct and development of enlisted soldiers and non-commissioned officers across the command.

The CAC Chief of Staff manages and oversees the activities of a coordinating staff and a special staff. The coordinating staff is focused on policy and procedure development for the command; the special staff provides command-wide advice in specialized or technical areas.

Major subordinate organizations carry out the majority of the functions assigned to the CAC commander. In general, each is resourced for and focused on a core function and one or more specified functions.

Schools, centers and specialized activities are spread across the country and are responsible for executing a portion of the CAC mission. In general, each of these organizations is responsible for the training of specific branch skills (such as "Infantry") and serving as the Army's functional expert in that area. In this regard, CAC is an integrator of specialized skills, on one hand, and an executor of common skills, on the other.

Military Review

Since 1922, the center has published the bimonthly journal Military Review.

Commanders

Since 1976 commandant of the college has been a Lieutenant General (three stars). David Petraeus was a commandant immediately before going to command the Multinational Force - Iraq.

  • Lieutenant General James C. Riley from Jul 2001 to Jun 2003
  • Lieutenant General William S. Wallace from Jul 2003 to Oct 2005
  • Lieutenant General David H. Petraeus from Oct 2005 to Feb 2007
  • Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell IV from Jun 2007 to Nov 2009
  • Lieutenant General Robert L. Caslen Jr. from Feb 2010 to Sep 2011
  • Lieutenant General David G. Perkins from Nov 2011 to Feb 2014
  • Lieutenant General Robert B. Brown from Feb 2014 to Apr 2016
  • Lieutenant General Michael Lundy from Apr 2016 to Dec 2019
  • Lieutenant General James E. Rainey from Dec 2019 to May 2021
  • Lieutenant General Theodore D. Martin from May 2021 to Present

Command Sergeants Major

  • Command Sergeant Major Stephen H. Helton 2021–Present
  • Command Sergeant Major Eric C. Dostie 2018–2021
  • Command Sergeant Major David Turnbull 2014–2018
  • Command Sergeant Major Jeffrey W. Wright 2013–2014
  • Command Sergeant Major Christopher K. Greca 2011–2013
  • Command Sergeant Major Philip F. Johndrow 2008–2011
  • Command Sergeant Major David M. Bruner 2007–2008
  • Command Sergeant Major Cory N. McCarty 2005–2007
  • Command Sergeant Major John D. Sparks 2003–2005
  • Command Sergeant Major Cynthia A. Pritchett 1997–2003
  • Command Sergeant Major Edward D. Naylor 1993–1997
  • Command Sergeant Major L. H. Smith 1991–1993
kids search engine
United States Army Combined Arms Center Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.