ST. PAUL, MN – Governor Mark Dayton today announced the appointment of Major General Jon A. Jensen to serve as the 31st Adjutant General of the Minnesota National Guard. General Jensen will fill the vacancy created upon the upcoming retirement of Major General Richard Nash under the state’s mandatory retirement at the end of October. He will serve a seven-year term.

 

“General Jensen has been a tremendous leader of the Minnesota National Guard throughout his years of dedicated service,” said Governor Dayton. “He currently serves in two top-leadership positions, as the Commanding General of the 34th Red Bull Infantry Division, and also as the Chief of Staff at the Guard's Joint Force Headquarters. I am confident that he will continue to provide the same outstanding leadership, as his predecessor, General Rick Nash.”

 

“I thank Governor Dayton for the opportunity to continue my service to the Minnesota National Guard as Adjutant General,” said General Jensen. “I am committed to leading my fellow National Guard members to build on the foundation of one of the strongest National Guards in the country. Through service and sacrifice, we will work together day and night to make our state, our nation, and our world better, safer places.”

 

The Adjutant General is chief executive of the Minnesota Department of Military Affairs and the leader of the Minnesota National Guard. Minnesota has the nation's tenth largest National Guard, with more than 13,000 members operating in 63 facilities throughout the state.

 

“General Jensen is a proven leader in the Minnesota National Guard, and has been invaluable to the success of the Guard as my Chief of Staff over the past six years,” said Outgoing Minnesota National Guard Adjutant General, Major General Richard C. Nash. “General Jensen has earned the respect and admiration of his fellow Guard members, commanding at every level from an enlisted Staff Sergeant Squad Leader to Major General Division Command. He will be an outstanding leader of the Minnesota National Guard.”

 

Governor Dayton established a Committee on Adjutant General Selection, to aid in the review and selection process that recommended candidates to Governor Dayton for this vacancy. Eligible applicants were those who were commissioned officers of the National Guard of Minnesota, with not less than ten years military service in the Minnesota National Guard or the armed forces of the United States, at least three of which shall have been commissioned and who shall have reached the grade of a field officer.

 

Major General Jon A. Jensen was appointed to serve as the 31st Adjutant General of the Minnesota National Guard by Governor Mark Dayton on August 30, 2017. General Jensen was previously named Commanding General of the 34th Red Bull Infantry Division in the Minnesota Army National Guard in January 2017. Jensen also served as the full time State Chief of Staff to the Minnesota National Guard Joint Force Headquarters. 

 

Jon A. Jensen received his commission in 1989 through the Officer Candidate School Fort Benning, Georgia. His previous assignments include service at the battalion, brigade, division, and state headquarters levels with the Iowa Army National Guard and Minnesota Army National Guard.

 

Jensen has completed tours of duty in Kuwait, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Iraq. In 2007, he deployed to Iraq as Commander, HHC Forward, 1st Brigade, 34th Infantry Division. In 2009, he served a tour of duty as the Assistant Chief of Staff, G3, 34th Infantry Division, United States Forces – South, headquartered in Basra, Iraq. In 2010, Colonel Jensen was assigned as Chief of Staff, 34th Infantry Division. He has been a National Guardsman for more than 29 years and a full-time soldier for over 20 years.

 

A photo of General Jon A. Jensen is available by clicking here.

Major General Richard C. Nash became the 30th Adjutant General of the State of Minnesota on November 1, 2010. Prior to this position, his recent assignments included Commanding General of the United States Division-South in Iraq, Commanding General of the 34th Infantry Division in Rosemount, MN, Special Assistant to the Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command Combatant Commander.

 

“I thank Major General Rick Nash for his exceptional service to our state and nation, which includes the last seven years as the Adjutant General of the Minnesota National Guard,” said Governor Dayton. “General Nash has provided superb leadership for the Guard and for the people of Minnesota. His devotion to our Guardsmen and women and their families has been incomparable.”

 

General Nash’s military service began when he was drafted into the U.S. Army Infantry in 1972. He went on to command at all levels, from company to multinational. General Nash received his Bachelor of Science degree from Mankato State University before attending the United States Army War College. For his dedicated service to his country demonstrated by the courageous fulfillment of his assignments, General Nash has earned many awards. His honors include the Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal, Bronze Star, and NATO medal, among others.

 

A photo of Major General Richard C. Nash is available by clicking here.

 

Minnesota has the nation's tenth largest National Guard, with more than 13,000 members operating in 63 facilities throughout the state. Since 2001, more than 25,000 Minnesota National Guard members have been deployed & served in more than 33 countries worldwide. The Minnesota National Guard is under state jurisdiction and can be used by the Governor to assist the state during disasters and other state emergencies. In times of war, Minnesota National Guard Soldiers and Airmen can be called into federal active service with the President of the United States as Commander in Chief. For more information, visit http://www.minnesotanationalguard.org/.