Mark Hertling | |
|---|---|
 Hertling in 2011 | |
| Born | September 29, 1953 St. Louis, Missouri |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service/ | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1975–2013 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Commands held | United States Army Europe United States Army Center for Initial Military Training 1st Armored Division Multi-National Division North National Training Center |
| Battles/wars | Gulf War Iraq War Libyan Civil War |
| Awards | Army Distinguished Service Medal (2) Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit (4) Bronze Star Medal (4) Purple Heart |
Mark Phillip Hertling (born September 29, 1953) is a former United States Army officer. From March 2011 to November 2012, he served as the Commanding General of United States Army Europe and the Seventh Army.[1] Hertling served in Armor, Cavalry, planning, operations and training positions, and commanded every organization from Platoon to Field Army. He commanded the 1st Armored Division and Task Force Iron/Multinational Division-North in Iraq during the troop surge of 2007 to 2008.
After retirement from the army, Hertling became a Senior Vice President for the Florida Hospital organization in Orlando from 2012 to 2018. While there, he developed a successful Physician Leader Development course for that organization. In 2016, he also published the book Growing Physician Leaders. Since 2018, he has provided leadership courses to several healthcare institutions throughout the nation, while also speaking on leadership and national security for myriad audiences.
In 2013, Hertling was also appointed by President Barack Obama to be one of 25 people serving on the President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition. He served as a Council member until 20 January 2017.[2] He also acts as a senior advisor to "Mission Readiness", a nonprofit, bipartisan organization of retired military leaders who call for smart investments for U.S. children. He has served as a board member for World TEAM (The Exceptional Athlete Matters) Sport, an organization providing opportunities for physically challenged athletes, and he serves as a senior advisor to "Operation Gratitude", an organization supporting deployed military, first line responders, healthcare workers and their families. In 2016, he was named as an Adjunct Scholar to the Modern War Institute at the United States Military Academy at West Point, and in 2019 he became an adjunct professor at the Crummer School of Business at Rollins College, and was later appointed as "Professor of Practice, Leadership" for the Crummer Graduate School of Business in 2024. In 2021, Hertling received a Presidential appointment to the American Battle Monuments Commission. Since June 2014, Hertling has appeared as a national security and military analyst for CNN.
Hertling was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He attended Christian Brothers College High School, then located in Clayton, Missouri, graduating in 1971. He is a member of the CBC Alumni Hall of Fame, elected in 2010. In 1975, Hertling was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Armor Branch after graduation from the United States Military Academy at West Point. While at West Point, Hertling was on the NCAA Division I Swimming and Water Polo Team, and he was active as a member of his class committee and attained the rank of Cadet Captain.
Hertling received a Master of Science in Kinesiology from Indiana University, a Master of Military Arts and Sciences from the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and a Master of National Security and Strategic Studies from the National War College in Washington, D.C. In May 2019 he received a doctorate in business administration from the Crummer School of Business, Rollins College, defending research regarding physician leadership in the healthcare industry.
Throughout his military career, Hertling saw alternating assignment between operational and training postings, and he gained a reputation as a skilled trainer and a soldier-focused leader and commander. He has been assigned to all of the Combat Training Centers in the United States and Germany, expanding the center in Europe. Hertling has influenced the training model in the U.S. Army at various stages of his career. He served in command and staff assignments in the continental United States and overseas.
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Hertling began his professional career in Europe as a second lieutenant, leading tank and scout platoons in the 3rd Infantry Division in 1975 to 1977. In 1988, he returned to Europe as a major, serving first on the staff of the 1st Armored Division as the deputy G-3, then as the S-3 of 1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment (Blackhawks) with whom he deployed during Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm. The 1-1 Cavalry was cited for its role in the Battle of Medina Ridge, where Hertling was wounded in action.
Hertling also commanded 1st Squadron, 16th Cavalry Regiment at Fort Knox. He also commanded 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division at Fort Lewis, Wash. when that unit was named as the Army's first Stryker Brigade. He was Commander of Operations Group, National Training Center and Fort Irwin, Fort Irwin, California, and commanded the 7th Army Training Command, transforming it to the Joint-Multinational Training Command, in Grafenwoehr, Germany. He also served as the Vice J-7 and the J-7, on the Joint Staff in Washington, D.C. from 2001 to 2003, and as the United States Army Europe G-3 from 2005 to 2007.
Hertling's overseas assignments include responsibility as the Commanding General, 1st Armored Division/Multi-National Division-North, as a major general from October 2007 to December 2008, both in Wiesbaden, Germany and in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Prior to this, as a brigadier general, he was the assistant division commander from September 2003 to August 2004 of the 1st Armored Division, United States Army Europe and Seventh United States Army, in Baghdad, Iraq.
Before his final posting as the USAREUR Commander, Hertling commanded the 1st Armored Division from 2007 to 2009, and he was the first Deputy Commanding General for Initial Military Training (IMT) from 2009 to 2011. In the former role, he commanded the "1st Tank" in both its home location in Germany, and for 15 months as part of the surge in Iraq. In Iraq, Task Force Iron was based in Tikrit, and cooperated with five Iraqi Army divisions in security and on a "whole of government" approach. As a combined force, these units conducted many operations to strengthen the Iraqi Security Forces and the provincial governments in the four Arab and three Kurdish provinces in the north, and they contributed to significant improvement in the economic and security conditions in the region. Hertling integrated a series of named kinetic operations ("Iron") with a unique series of non-kinetic engagements ("United and Strong") to further improve stability, government, economics, and security.
As the first commander of IMT from 2009 to 2011, Hertling was responsible for integrating the initial training of about 160,000 officers and enlisted soldiers entering United States Army training every year at 27 installations across the United States. Hertling led change in several areas, including integrating new training methods into basic combat training, advanced individual training, and basic officer leadership courses. IMT revised the Army's Warrior Tasks and Battle Drills[3] and developed further training in rifle marksmanship, combatives, values instruction, first aid, and cultural training. IMT's "Soldier-Athlete"[4] initiative also brought about innovative changes in physical readiness training, introducing athletic trainers and physical therapists to training units, and integrating performance nutrition into Army dining facilities ("Fueling the Soldier"). Complementing Soldier Athlete, Hertling recommended change to the Army's Physical Readiness (PT) test, a recommendation which was not initially accepted by the Army.[5]
Hertling also taught in the Department of Physical Education at the United States Military Academy, and served as a speechwriter for General Frederick M. Franks Jr. when he commanded TRADOC.[citation needed]
In 2018, Hertling and Molly K. McKew wrote an article for Politico: "Putin's Attack on the U.S. Is Our Pearl Harbor", which urged the United States to respond accordingly to Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections.[6]
General Hertling has attended the following military schools :
2LT – June 4, 1975
1LT – June 5, 1977
CPT – November 18, 1979
MAJ – June 1, 1986
LTC – July 1, 1992
COL – August 1, 1997
BG – January 1, 2003
MG – January 1, 2006
LTG – September 25, 2009
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