William E. Ward

William E. "Kip" Ward (born March 6, 1949), is a former United States Army four-star general who previously served as Commander, U.S. Africa Command from October 1, 2007 to March 8, 2011. Prior to that, Ward previously served as Deputy Commander, U.S. European Command. After he left U.S. Africa Command, Ward reverted to his permanent rank of major general and served as a special assistant to the Army’s vice chief of staff pending an investigation in misuse of taxpayer money. Ward then retired with the rank of lieutenant general in November 2012.

Education
Ward holds a M.A. in Political Science from Pennsylvania State University and a B.A. in Political Science from Morgan State University. His military education includes the Infantry Officer Basic and Advanced courses, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and U.S. Army War College.

Military Service
Ward was commissioned into the infantry in 1971. His military service includes overseas tours in Korea, Egypt, Somalia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Israel, two tours in Germany, and a wide variety of assignments in the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. He relinquished command of Africa Command to General Carter F. Ham.

Probe
While a retirement ceremony was held in April 2011, Ward remains on active-duty, pending a special Army investigation by the Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Defense. The investigation has run 17 months and a ruling on the matter is pending with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. Unnamed "defense officials said Ward is facing numerous allegations that he spent several hundreds of thousands of dollars allowing unauthorized people, including family members, to fly on government planes, and spent excessive amounts of money on hotel rooms, transportation and other expenses when he traveled as head of Africa Command". In a Pentagon report, Ward spent $129,000 of taxpayer money on an 11-day trip with an entourage of 13 military and civilian personnel. His appeal of this finding is under review.

Rank
Ward held the four-star grade of general while serving as Commander, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), a "position of importance and responsibility" under 10 USC § 601. Ward was reduced in rank upon retirement by Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. Ward's retired rank is that of Lieutenant General which was determined to be the last rank in which he had satisfactorily served.

Command Assignments
His command assignments include:
 * Platoon Leader, 3d Battalion (Airborne), 325th Infantry, 82d Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina
 * Rifle Company Commander, 1st Battalion (Mechanized), 17th Infantry, 2d Infantry Division, Camp Howze, Korea
 * Commander, 5th Battalion, 9th Infantry, 2d Brigade, later G-4 (Logistics), 6th Infantry Division (Light), Fort Wainwright, Alaska
 * Commander, 2d Brigade, 10th Mountain Division (Light), Fort Drum, New York and Operation Restore Hope, Mogadishu, Somalia
 * Assistant Division Commander (Support), 82d Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina
 * Commanding General 25th Infantry Division (Light) and U.S. Army, Hawaii, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii
 * Commander, Stabilization Force, Operation Joint Forge, Sarajevo, Bosnia
 * Deputy Commander, United States Army, Europe
 * Commander, United States Africa Command

Staff Assignments
His staff assignments include:
 * Executive Officer, U.S. Army Military Community Activity – U.S. Army Europe and Seventh Army, Aschaffenburg, Germany
 * Executive Officer, 1st Battalion (Mechanized), 7th Infantry, 3d Infantry Division, US Army Europe and Seventh Army, Germany
 * S-4 (Logistics), 210th Field Artillery Brigade, VII Corps, US Army Europe and Seventh Army, Germany
 * Staff Officer (Logistics), Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics, US Army, Washington, DC
 * Executive Officer to the Vice Chief of Staff, U.S. Army, Washington, DC
 * Deputy Director for Operations, J-3, National Military Command Center, The Joint Staff, Washington, DC
 * Chief, Office of Military Cooperation, American Embassy, Egypt
 * Vice Director for Operations, J-3, The Joint Staff, Washington, DC

Prior to assuming command of AFRICOM, he was the Deputy Commanding General/Chief of Staff, US Army Europe and Seventh Army. While in this capacity he was selected by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to serve as the United States Security Coordinator, Israel - Palestinian Authority where he served from March 2005 through December 2005.

Awards and decorations
William E. Ward received the Trumpet Award in 2010 as well as the BEYA award for Lifetime Achievement.

Membership

 * Member of Omega Psi Phi fraternity
 * Member of 100 Black Men of America
 * National Society of Pershing Rifles
 * Member of the 17th Infantry Regiment Association
 * Honorary Member of Sergeant Audie Murphy Club