|
LTC
Kirk E. Gibbs Lieutenant Colonel Kirk Gibbs took command of the 1st Engineer Battalion on 2 September 2010. He was born in Rolla, Missouri in 1972 and lived in Davisville, Missouri throughout his childhood. In 1994, he graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering. In 1998, he received a Master of Science degree in Engineering Management from the University of Missouri-Rolla. Upon graduation from USMA in 1994, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers. LTC Gibbs’ initial assignment was with the 91st Engineer Battalion at Ft. Hood, Texas where he served as a Platoon Leader, Company Executive Officer, and Battalion S4. Upon graduation from the Engineer Officer Advanced Course (EOAC) and Combined Arms and Services Staff School (CAS3), he was stationed at Ft. Riley, Kansas with the 1st Engineer Battalion where he served as a Battalion Assistant S3, the Battalion S1, and Company Commander. He deployed with the battalion to Bosnia-Herzegovina as part of SFOR-6 and to Kuwait for Intrinsic Action 01-03. LTC Gibbs was then assigned to the National Training Center in Ft. Irwin, California where he served as a staff and company trainer for two years. After graduation from the Command and General Staff College at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas in 2005, he deployed to Kuwait as part of the 3rd Army CFLCC Staff where he served as the C7 Senior Operations Officer. In 2006, he was reassigned to the 70th Engineer Battalion at Ft. Riley, Kansas where he served as the Battalion S3 and Executive Officer including a deployment to Operation Enduring Freedom 06-08 in Afghanistan for a period of 15 months. In his most recent assignment prior to taking command of the 1st Engineer Battalion, LTC Gibbs served as the Secretary of the General Staff, Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from September 2008 until August 2010. LTC Gibbs is a graduate of Air Assault School in 1992, Airborne School in 1994, the Engineer Officer Basic Course in 1995, the Engineer Officer Advanced Course in 1998, CAS3 in 1998, and the Command and General Staff College in 2005. His awards include the Bronze Star Medal; Army Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters; the Army Commendation Medal with three oak leaf clusters; the Army Achievement Medal with one oak leaf cluster; the National Defense Service Medal (2); the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (2); the Global War on Terror Expeditionary Medal; and the NATO Medal (2). He is married to the former Kimberly Paarlberg of Viburnum, Missouri. They have three children: Tyler (14), Kelsey (10), and Ryan (5). |