Adjutant General, Georgia Department of Defense

Major General Joe Jarrard graduated from North Georgia College and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army in 1988.  He served on Active Duty for over 20 years.

Appointed by the Governor of the State of Georgia in 2014, Maj. Gen. Jarrard serves as the 42nd Adjutant General of the Georgia Department of Defense. Previously, he served for more than three years as the Assistant Adjutant General - Army and Commanding General of the Georgia Army National Guard.

Under his leadership, the Georgia Army National Guard was selected by U.S. Army Forces Command to lead the way in implementing the Army's Associated Unit Program - the only state organization to have both division and battalion level associations with the Active Army component. This is a 5-year pilot program in which Georgia's 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is directly aligned with the 3rd Infantry Division.

Furthering international theater security cooperation initiatives, the Georgia National Guard was selected by the National Guard Bureau for a second partner country (Argentina) for the U.S. State Partnership Program. This is in addition to the Georgia National Guard's 24-year partnership with the Country of Georgia.

Locally, the Georgia Department of Defense has recently opened a third Youth Challenge Academy (Milledgeville), making Georgia one of only three states with three academies. Georgia was also selected to establish one of only three cyber protection Teams in the National Guard, placing Georgia in the forefront of cyber defense.

While on active duty, Maj. Gen. Jarrard served at numerous duty stations to include Germany; Fort Stewart, Ga.; Fort Riley, Kan. and Fort Bragg, N.C. He deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003 and 2005.  He also worked as a defense contractor in Afghanistan from April 2010 to September 2011.

Major General Jarrard's awards include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster and Meritorious Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster.

He and his wife, Susan, have three sons, Ben, Will and Joseph.