INTERVIEW Lt. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon
Lt. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon
Commanding General and Chief of Engineers
p U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Commanding General and 55th Chief of Engineers Lt. Gen. Scott Spellmon (center) joined U.S. and allied troops June 6, 2023 in Romania, where they were participating in Saber Guardian 2023. Troops conducted wet gap crossings to facilitate the movement of troops across the Danube River at the Bordusani Training Area in Romania as part of the larger exercise, designed to improve the integration of multinational combat forces. USACE PHOTO BY MAJ. LAMAR CANTELOU
L
t. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon assumed duties as the 55th chief of engineers and commanding general of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on Sept. 10, 2020, after most recently serving as the USACE deputy commanding general for civil and emergency operations. BY CHRISTOPHER J. AUGSBURGER
10 I AMERICA’S ENGINEERS
Spellmon, a native of Bloomingdale, New Jersey, is a 1986 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. He holds a Master of Science in civil engineering from the University of Illinois at Champaign/Urbana and a Master of Science in national security strategy from the U.S. Army War College. Spellmon’s command assignments include commanding general of USACE’s Northwestern Division, where he oversaw an annual program of more than $3 billion in civil works, environmental restoration, and military construction in 14 states, primarily within the Columbia and Missouri River basins; commanding general of the U.S. Army Operational Test Command, Fort Hood, Texas; commander, 1st Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, Fort Polk, Louisiana; commander, 317th Engineer Battalion and 3-3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, both as part of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Benning, Georgia. Spellmon’s key staff assignments include executive director, Office of the Chief of Engineers, Headquarters, Department of the Army; chief of staff, U.S. Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri; engineer intelligence officer, Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps, Rheindahlen, Germany; and observer-controller, Combat Maneuver Training Center, Hohenfels, Germany. Spellmon’s operational deployments include Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm; Operation Iraqi Freedom; and Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan. His military awards and decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, two Bronze Stars, the Purple Heart, and the Combat Action Badge. What will be your No. 1 priority going into your final year in command? Lt. Gen. Scott A. Spellmon: As I look toward my final year in command of this incredible organization, my No. 1 priority remains safely delivering quality projects on time and within budget. I see this happening through an approach that focuses on the idea of “thinking differently” across everything we do so that our solutions represent a multitude of cultures, disciplines, scientific approaches, and skills. This diversity of thoughts and skills will better advance our efforts on innovation, how we do business, and
