Eric Shinseki
| Eric Shinseki |
 |
|
| 7th United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs
|
In office
January 21, 2009 – May 30, 2014 |
| President |
Barack Obama |
| Deputy |
Scott Gould
Sloan Gibson
|
| Preceded by |
James Peake |
| Succeeded by |
Robert A. McDonald |
| 34th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army
|
In office
June 21, 1999 – June 11, 2003 |
| President |
Bill Clinton
George W. Bush
|
| Preceded by |
Dennis Reimer |
| Succeeded by |
Peter Schoomaker |
| 28th Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army
|
In office
November 24, 1998 – June 21, 1999 |
| President |
Bill Clinton |
| Preceded by |
William Crouch |
| Succeeded by |
Jack Keane |
| Personal details |
| Born |
Eric Ken Shinseki
(1942-11-28) November 28, 1942 (age 74)
Lihue, Hawaii, U.S.
|
| Spouse(s) |
Patricia Shinseki |
| Children |
2 |
| Education |
U.S. Military Academy (BS)
Duke University (MA)
United States Army Command and General Staff College
National Defense University
|
| Military service |
| Allegiance |
 United States
|
| Service/branch |
 United States Army
|
| Years of service |
1965–2003 |
| Rank |
 General
|
| Unit |
14th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division
|
| Commands |
Army Chief of Staff
Army Vice Chief of Staff
Seventh United States Army
Allied Land Forces Central Europe
NATO Stabilization Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina
1st Cavalry Division
2nd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division
3rd Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division
3rd Squadron, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division
Troop A, 3rd Squadron, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division |
| Battles/wars |
Vietnam War
Bosnian War
|
| Awards |
Defense Distinguished Service Medal (2)
Army Distinguished Service Medal (2)
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Air Force Distinguished Service Medal
Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal
Legion of Merit (2)
Bronze Star (3)
Purple Heart (2)
Meritorious Service Medal
Air Medal
Army Commendation Medal (2) |
Eric Ken Shinseki (; born November 28, 1942) is a retired United States Army general who served as the seventh United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (2009–2014). His final U.S. Army post was as the 34th Chief of Staff of the Army (1999–2003). Shinseki is a veteran of two tours of combat in the Vietnam War, in which he was awarded three Bronze Stars for valor and two Purple Hearts. He was the first Asian-American four-star general, and the first Asian-American Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Shinseki was born in Lihue, Kauaʻi, in the then Territory of Hawaii, to an American family of Japanese ancestry. His grandparents emigrated from Hiroshima to Hawaii in 1901. He grew up in a sugarcane plantation community on Kaua'i and graduated from Kaua'i High and Intermediate School in 1960. While attending Kaua'i he was active in the Boy Scouts and served as class president. As a boy, Shinseki learned that three of his uncles had served in the 442nd Infantry Regiment, a unit of Japanese Americans that became one of the most decorated fighting units in United States history. Motivated by his uncles' example, he attended the United States Military Academy and graduated in 1965 with a bachelor of science degree and a commission as a second lieutenant. He earned a Master of Arts degree in English Literature from Duke University. He was also educated at the Armor Officer Advanced Course, the United States Army Command and General Staff College, and the National War College of National Defense University.
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