Brigadier General Noel F. Palmer is the Commanding General of the 102d Training Division. He also serves as the Deputy Commanding General for Reserve Affairs, Maneuver Support Center of Excellence (MSCoE). Both are located at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.
BG Palmer was commissioned into active duty in 1995 as a second lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers after graduating from the United States Military Academy. He left active duty in 2000, transitioning into the Army Reserve in 2002.
BG Palmer served on active duty, first with the 70th Engineer Battalion (Mechanized) at Ft. Riley Kansas–as an Assistant S4, Platoon Leader, and Company Executive Officer) and later with the 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (Light) at Ft. Lewis, Washington–as the Assistant Brigade Engineer. While in the Army Reserve, he has served with the 244th Engineer Battalion in Denver, Colorado–as Plans Officer and Company Commander, the 916th FEST-A in Omaha, Nebraska–as Mechanical Engineer, the 600th Engineer Facilities Detachment in Des Moines, Iowa–as Team Leader, the 12-104th Engineer Battalion in Sioux Falls, South Dakota–as Battalion Commander, the US Army War College–as Director of Reserve Component Studies, the 372d Engineer Brigade in Minneapolis, Minnesota–as Brigade S7, Brigade Executive Officer, and Brigade Commander, and the 412th Theater Engineer Command as the Deputy Commanding General—Support.
BG Palmer’s operational experience includes a deployment to Saudi Arabia in 1997 as a Design Engineer, to Iraq in 2003 as Battalion Plans Officer and Company Commander, to Afghanistan in 2010 as an Engineer Planner, and to Kuwait in 2021 as Brigade Commander.
BG Palmer’s military education includes the Engineer Officer Basic Course, Aviation Officer Advance Course, Combined Arms and Services Staff School, Intermediate Level Education, Advanced Operations Course, Reserve Component National Security Course, and US Army War College. His civilian education includes a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from the United States Military Academy, Master’s in Business from the University of Nebraska, Master’s in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College, and PhD in Management from the University of Nebraska.
BG Palmer’s awards include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, and Army Achievement Medal. He has also been awarded the Engineer Regiment’s Silver Order of the de Fleury.
BG Palmer is an Associate Professor at the School for Command Preparation at the Combined Arms Center, Ft. Leavenworth, where he is a seminar leader for the Battalion Pre-Command Course.