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The Senate confirmed Air Force Lt. Gen. Steven S. Nordhaus to be the 30th chief of the National Guard Bureau and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Sept. 25.
Nordhaus will serve as the principal advisor to the secretary of defense on Guard issues.
He will also be responsible for ensuring the staffing, training and equipping of the more than 430,000 Guard soldiers and airmen from the 54 states, territories and the District of Columbia.
Nordhaus will receive a fourth star and formally assume responsibility as NGB's chief later this month.
NGAUS applauded the Senate's recent action.
"On behalf of the more than 45,000 members of the National Guard Association of the United States, I commend the Senate for moving quickly on confirming Lieutenant General Steven S. Nordhaus as the next chief of the National Guard Bureau," said retired Maj. Gen. Francis M. McGinn, the association's president.
"We look forward to him receiving his fourth star and formally taking his place as the 30th NGB chief and his seat with the Joint Chiefs of Staff," he added. "We are even more eager to begin working with him on bettering our nearly 400-year-old institution that has served our states and nation so well."
Nordhaus was among more than 6,000 military officers the Senate confirmed via voice vote late Sept. 24 to new ranks and — in some cases — to new jobs.
Other senior leaders the Senate approved included Navy Vice Adm. Alvin Holsey, who was promoted to admiral and to serve as commander of U.S. Southern Command; Air Force Lt. Gen. Randall Reed, who was promoted to general and to serve as commander of U.S. Transportation Command; and Air Force Lt. Gen. Xavier T. Brunson, who was promoted to general and to serve as commander of U.S. Forces Korea.
Nordhaus is currently commander of the Continental U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command Region – First Air Force (Air Forces Northern & Air Forces Space) at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.
The next NGB chief graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1989 with a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering.
Nordhaus served on active duty as an F-16 pilot and as an F-16 instructor and evaluator pilot before joining the Ohio Air Guard in 1998.
A command pilot with more than 3,000 flying hours, Nordhaus' service includes combat missions over Afghanistan and Iraq.
Army Lt. Gen. Jonathan M. Stubbs has served as NGB's acting chief since the bureau's 29th chief, retired Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson, retired and relinquished responsibility Aug. 2.
Stubbs was confirmed by the Senate to serve as the director of the Army Guard in August.
He remains the senior general officer at NGB.
As a member of the Joint Chiefs, NGB's chief serves as a military advisor to the president, the secretary of defense and the National Security Council.
NGB's chief is also the Defense Department's official channel of communication to the nation's governors and state adjutants general on Guard matters.
— Based on DoD & NGB press releases
