Brigadier Gen. Donna Williams will serve as the keynote speaker at the Spring Army Commissioning and Pinning Ceremony at Jackson State University.
The celebration begins at 1 p.m. Friday, May 1, at the JSU Student Center, Ballroom A, according to the JSU Military Department.
She is the first black female from JSU to be promoted as brigadier general for the U.S. Army.
Williams currently serves as the deputy commanding general, support, at the 312 Theater Engineer Command in Vicksburg, Miss.
A Vicksburg native, Williams earned her commission through the Army ROTC Early Commissioning Program at JSU where she also received a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science.
Before she entered the Active Guard and Reserve program in 1990, she served as a civil engineer in the 412th Engineer Command. She deployed to Baghdad as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom from May 2006 to May 2007, serving as support officer for the Army Sustainment Command’s Logistics Civil Augmentation Program.
Williams’ awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit Medal, Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with a silver oak leaf cluster, Army Commendation Medal with four oak leaf clusters, Army Achievement Medal, Reserve Components Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal with bronze service star, Iraqi Campaign Medal with campaign star, and Global War On Terrorism Service Medal, among others.
For more about the Military Department, see: https://www.jsums.edu/arotc/