Secretary of the Army Dr. Mark T. Esper and Army Chief of Staff GEN Mark A. Milley, announced that CSM Michael Grinston has been selected as the next Sergeant Major of the Army. He currently serves as Command Sergeant Major, US Army Forces Command.
Command Sergeant Major Michael A. Grinston hails from Jasper, Alabama. A career artilleryman, he joined the Army in October 1987 as a Cannon Crewmember and has served at every leadership level from Cannon Crewmember to I Corps Command Sergeant Major.
He has been assigned to 1-84 FA at Fort Lewis, WA, 2-320th FA at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, two tours at Ledward Barracks in Schweinfurt, Germany with 5-41 FA and 1-7th FA, 1-39th FA at Fort Bragg, NC, E/1- 22 FA Fort Sill, OK, D/319th FA, 1-508 IN and 2-503 IN at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza, Italy. His service as a command sergeant major includes assignments as a Battalion CSM with 2-15 FA at Fort Drum, NY, Observer Controller CSM at Hohenfels, Germany, Brigade CSM 170th IBCT in Baumholder, Germany, Brigade CSM 4/101 at Fort Campbell, KY, 1st Infantry Division CSM at Fort Riley, KS, and I Corps at JBLM, WA.
CSM Grinston’s deployments include Desert Shield, Desert Storm, and Kosovo. He has deployed in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom twice each, and recently returned from the Army’s first deployment of a division headquarters in support of Operation Inherent Resolve Iraq from October 2014 to June 2015.
His awards and decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, and 5 Bronze Stars (with 2 ‘V’ devices). He has earned the Ranger tab, Master Parachutist badge, Air Assault badge, Drill Sergeant identification badge, and the Combat Action Badge. He has attended every level of the Noncommissioned Officer Education System and is a graduate of Ranger, Airborne, and Air Assault Schools. He is also a graduate of Drill Sergeant School and the Equal Opportunity Course.
CSM Grinston possesses a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from the University of Maryland University College.
party is over boys a pogue is sma again …
Dang! We were all thinking it, but you actually said it . . .
yep
Big deal, it’s the US Army.
What’s your take on this guy? What’s the small deal about the Army?
You are an Idiot! He is an Airborne Ranger Master Jumpmaster with multiple combat tours! Not a Pogue, Not a Leg and Not someone you want to mess with. You can hide behind a keyboard and talk shit but this Man has accomplished more than MOST infantryman! Grow up!
Whats above the jump master wings?
CAB
Master Parachutist badge is not a designation for a Jumpmaster school graduate. The master blaster wings involve 65 or more jumps I think including at least 5 mass tac jumps and other criteria. I will leave it to the jumping junkies here to add to it since I was just a mechanized leg grunt.
He’s got the “we’re working past 1800 again” haircut.
Equal opportunity course ???
Wonder what uniform changes he will implement.
UCP Delta for all!
Educate a squid, please. He’s an artilleryman. That’s combat arms. Are pogues anyone who isn’t infantry?
Mike, infantry Marines and Gunners Mates both handle machine guns–would you consider their jobs the same?
No, I wouldn’t. But Gunner’s Mates don’t normally send rounds down range. Artillerymen do.
But I get the point. It’s like the post higher up the scroll on the new badge – infantry is different from the others…
Tabbed and Master Blaster, and has deployed multiple times in different decades, has to count for something right.. Not like the one that was in TRADOC all that time..
Master Blaster??
Those wings, cherry.
An aviator as CSA and artilleryman as SMA–so long, close combat lethality task force.
As a retired 25 year MSG it’s interesting to see so many “soldiers” demonstrating to their junior military enlisted how to show disrespect to a future SMA; someone they know nothing about. As an “ARTILLERYMAN” not only do we need to understand our jobs; but how to properly provide accurate and timely fires to those in direct contact. Direct Contact, artillery units have dealt with being in “direct Contact” since our inception. Why do you all think we’re classed as an combat army branch? I’m not slighting any other soldier that attains the position of SMA for any reason. Who out there seriously thinks that the board of selection was made up of all artillerymen? Be serious here. The deployments this man has been on have all placed him in direct harms way, so unless you know this man personally I suggest you stop being an idiot just because you didn’t attain SMA. Show some respect. I’m sure this man earned it and didn’t buy his badges at Clothing Sales!
Well said
As a retired 26 year SGM, it’s interesting to see so many old POGs try to justify their significance to the world by acting like their antiquated old selves have some sort of better perspective on the world. Plenty commentators have been in just as much of harm’s way. We’re not complaining that the new SMA has never felt a bullet fly through his short hairs, the complaint is the mindset that comes from a career spent in arty vs infantry.
If you spent so long in the Army, you’d know that the proper term is “Pogue.” POG was created by infantrymen who were pogues so that no one would call them pogues anymore.