Major General Michael R. Smith assumed the position of Deputy Chief of Army Reserve (DCAR) on Oct. 1, 2015. As the DCAR he supports the Chief of Army Reserve (CAR) and the Assistant Chief of Army Reserve (ACAR). He represents the CAR for Strategy, Planning, Programming, Policy, and Resourcing (SPPPR) at the OSD, Joint Staff, HQDA and Army Secretariat level, as well as two- and three-star forums in the Pentagon. The DCAR is responsible for the integration, synchronization and coordination of the OCAR staff.
Major General Smith was commissioned as a United States Army Reserve Officer in June 1978, and has served in a variety of command and staff positions in the United States and Iraq. He served as the Commander, Headquarters Detachment, 2nd Brigade, 78th Division, Lodi, N.J. from July 1982 through October 1983. In November 1983, he commanded Company C, 1st Battalion, 311th Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 78th Division, in Mount Freedom, N.J. He served as the Assistant S1, 2nd Brigade, 78th Division, Lodi, N.J. until May 1990. Major General Smith served as the S3, 1st Battalion, 310th Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 78th Division in Lodi, NJ and the S3, 2nd Brigade, 78th Division until July 1996. He served as the Budget Officer and then Program Budget Officer for Resource Management, 78th Division in Edison, N.J., from July 1996 until May 1999 when he assumed command of the 10th Battalion (QM), 4th Brigade, 98th Division, Lodi, N.J.
In October 2001, Major General Smith served as the Commander, 4th Brigade, 98th Division, West Hartford, Conn., and then was assigned as the Chief of Staff, 98th Division, Rochester, N.Y. until February 2005. He served as the Chief of Staff and then Deputy Commanding General for the Civilian Police Assistance Training Team, Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq in Baghdad Iraq and then as the Deputy Director, Iraqi Security Forces, 501st Special Troops Battalion, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Forward Operating Base Speicher, Iraq until September 2006. From December 2006 to March 2008, Major General Smith served as Senior Advisor, Security Force Assistance at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. He served as the Deputy Commanding General, 99th Regional Support Command, at Fort Dix, NJ until August 2009 and deployed as the Director, Iraq Training and Advisory Mission-Police, United States Forces-Iraq, Baghdad, Iraq until October 2011. Major General Smith commanded the 333rd Military Police Brigade, located in Farmingdale, N.Y. until his September 2012 assignment as Deputy Commanding General-Support, First Army and Commanding General, U.S. Army Reserve Support Command-First Army, Rock Island, Ill. Since August 2014 Major General Smith served as the Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3 and Director, G-34, Army Protection Program.
Major General Smith, a native of Hoboken, N.J., earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Saint Peter’s College (N.J.) in 1978, and a Master of Science degree in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College in 2003. He is a graduate of the Finance Officer Basic Course, the Infantry Officer Advanced Course, the Combined Arms and Services Staff School, the United States Army Command and General Staff College, the Advanced Joint Professional Military Education, and CAPSTONE.
Major General Smith’s individual awards and decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (with one Oak Leaf Cluster), the Bronze Star Medal, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal (with four Oak Leaf Clusters), the Air Assault Badge, the Combat Action Badge, and the Joint Staff and Army Staff Identification Badges.
Major General Smith’s civilian career is in the field of finance, accounting and auditing. He is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in New Jersey. He and his wife, Bernadine, have six children and reside in New Jersey.