Major General Richard J. Hayes Jr. is the 39th Adjutant General of the State of Illinois. He assumed the duties of the Adjutant General on June 8, 2015. He serves as a member of the Governor's Cabinet as the Director of the Illinois Department of Military Affairs and is the Governor's principal advisor on military matters. General Hayes is the senior officer in the chain-of-command for both the Illinois Army and Air National Guard. He is responsible for the operations of the Illinois National Guard and oversees approximately 13,000 men and women in uniform (2,200 full time) and 230 civilian employees in the Illinois Department of Military Affairs. General Hayes was commissioned in 1987 from the Reserve Officer Training Corps program at the University of Kansas as a Field Artillery Officer. He was honor graduate at both the Field Artillery Officer Basic and Advanced Courses. He has had operational assignments at battery, battalion, brigade, and division. He participated in Hurricane Katrina and Rita Relief Operations, and Operation Joint Guardian, Kosovo. General Hayes most recent assignments were Deputy Commander Maneuver - Task Force Falcon, Operation Joint Guardian Kosovo, Director of Operations (J3) Illinois National Guard, Commander, 129th Regional Training Institute, Director of the Joint Staff, and Assistant Adjutant General - Army. EDUCATION: 1986 Bachelor of Arts, Geography, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas 2003 Master of Business Administration, General Management, Touro University International, Cypress, California 2007 Master of Strategic Studies, United States Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania 2011 Joint Task Force Commander Training Course, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado 2012 Contingency Dual Status Commander Qualification Program, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado 2013 Army Strategic Leadership Development Program – Basic, Tysons Corner, VA 2013 Reserve Component General Officer Legal Orientation Course, Charlottesville, 2013 General & Flag Officer Homeland Security Executive Seminar, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 2013 Enabling Mission Command Workshop, McLean, Virginia 2014 Joint Senior Leader Course, U.S. Army CBRN School, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri 2014 Level IV Anti-Terrorism Executive Training, Tysons Corner, Virginia 2014 Advanced Joint Professional Military Education, Joint Forces Staff College, Norfolk, VA 2015 Force Integration Course for Senior Leaders, Fort Belvoir, Virginia 2015 National Security Studies, Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University ASSIGNMENTS: May 1987 - October 1987, Fire Support Team Chief, Detachment 1, Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 127th Field Artillery, Topeka, Kansas October 1987 - March 1988, Student Officer Basic Course, Fort Sill, Oklahoma March 1988 - December 1989, Fire Direction Officer, Battery C, 1st Battalion, 127th Field Artillery, Burlington, Kansas December 1989 - August 1990, Executive Officer, Battery A, 2nd Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, Chicago, Illinois September 1990 - May 1992, Fire Support Plans Officer, Headquarters and Headquarters Service Battery, 2nd Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, North Riverside, Illinois May 1992 - October 1994, Commander, Battery C, 2nd Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, Chicago, Illinois October 1994 - October 1995, Logistics Officer (S-4), 2nd Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, Chicago, Illinois November 1995 - October 1996, Plans Officer, Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, Chicago, Illinois November 1996 - September 1997, Operations Officer, 2nd Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, Chicago, Illinois October 1997 - April 1999, Operations Officer (S-3), 2nd Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, Chicago, Illinois April 1999 - April 2002, Executive Officer, 2nd Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, Chicago, Illinois May 2002 - December 2005, Commander, 2nd Battalion, 122nd Field Artillery, Chicago, Illinois December 2005 - June 2007, Assistant Chief of Staff, G3 Operations, 35th Infantry Division, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas June 2007 - August 2008, Deputy Commander Maneuver, Task Force Falcon (KFOR9) Multinational Task Force East (MNTF-E), Kosovo, Serbia August 2008 - November 2008, Assistant Chief of Staff, G3 Operations, 35th Infantry Division, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas December 2008 - January 2010, Director of Operations (J3), Joint Force Headquarters, Illinois National Guard, Springfield, Illinois February 2010 - July 2012, Commander, 129th Regional Training Institute, Springfield, Illinois August 2012 – June 2013, Director of Joint Staff, Joint Force Headquarters, Illinois National Guard, Springfield, Illinois June 2013 – February 2015, Deputy Adjutant General/ Director of the Joint Staff, Joint Force Headquarters, Illinois National Guard, Springfield, Illinois February 2015 – June 2015 - Deputy Adjutant General/ Assistant Adjutant General – Army, Joint Force Headquarters, Illinois Army National Guard, Springfield, Illinois June 2015 – Present, The Adjutant General, Illinois National Guard, Springfield, Illinois AWARDS AND DECORATIONS: Legion of Merit (with 1 Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster) Meritorious Service Medal (with 2 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters) Army Commendation Medal (with 1 Silver and 1 Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster) Army Achievement Medal Army Reserve Component Achievement Medal (with 1 Silver and 2 Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters) National Defense Service Medal (with 1 Bronze Service Star) Kosovo Campaign Medal Global War on Terrorism Service Medal Humanitarian Service Medal Armed Forces Reserve Medal (with Bronze Hourglass and M Device) Army Service Ribbon Overseas Service Ribbon Army Reserves Components Overseas Training Ribbon North Atlantic Treaty Organization Non-Article 5 Medal Illinois Distinguished Service Medal Illinois Military Long and Honorable Service Medal Illinois State Active Duty Service Ribbon PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS & AFFILIATIONS: Adjutant Generals Association of the United States National Guard Association of the United States National Guard Association of Illinois Illinois Joining Forces Society of Military Engineers Field Artillery Association Military Officers Association of America American Legion Association of Energy Engineers OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS: 1988 Honor Graduate Field Artillery Officer Basic Course 1988 Master Shooter Award - Field Artillery School Basic Course 1992 33rd Separate Infantry Brigade General Douglas MacArthur Award Recipient 1996 Master Warfighter, Honor Graduate of Field Artillery Officer Advanced Course 2003 Graduate Summa Cum Laude - Touro University International 2008 Kansas University ROTC Alumni Hall of Fame EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION: Second Lieutenant USAR 09 Jan 87 Second Lieutenant ARNG 18 May 87 First Lieutenant ARNG 08 Jan 90 Captain ARNG 05 Mar 92 Major ARNG 05 Mar 98 Lieutenant Colonel ARNG 23 Aug 02 Colonel ARNG 22 Jun 06 Brigadier General (Line) ARNG 17 August 2012 Major General (Line) ARNG 5 August 2015 As of September 2015 Click here for PDF Print Version (size: 141KB)