The Maryland Student Legislature is pleased to announce that Major General Janeen L. Birckhead, the Adjutant General of Maryland, will speak to students from across the state during MSL’s 35th Annual Session.
Major General Birckhead is the 31st Adjutant General of the Maryland National Guard. In this capacity, Maj. Gen. Birckhead serves as military advisor to the Governor of Maryland, leading a force of more than 6,300 Soldiers, Airmen, and federal and state civilian employees. The Maryland National Guard provides a highly trained force ready to respond to domestic emergencies, natural disasters, and defend the United States and its global interests.
Maj. Gen. Birckhead has commanded Army units at the company, battalion, and brigade levels. Before her current role, Maj. Gen. Birckhead served as Commander of the Maryland Army National Guard and the Deputy Commandant for Reserve Affairs at the U.S. Army War College. Under her leadership, the Maryland Army National Guard-led Vaccine Equity Task Force ensured COVID-19 testing vaccination access to vulnerable populations across Maryland. Later, Maj. Gen. Birckhead commanded more than 15,000 National Guard members from across the nation during the National Guard mission to secure the U.S. Capitol following the events of January 6, 2021. During her command, the Maryland Army National Guard deployed dozens of units and hundreds of Soldiers to defend the United States at home and abroad.
In 2004, Maj. Gen. Birckhead mobilized for Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom, serving as Tiger Team Leader and Designated Military Officer for the Office of Administrative Review for the Detention of Enemy Combatants. In 2011, she deployed to Kabul, Afghanistan, and served as the NATO International Security Assistance Force deputy current operations officer for security partnering.
Maj. Gen. Birckhead’s military decorations include the Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, the NATO Medal, and the Afghanistan Campaign Medal.
Maj. Gen. Birckhead graduated with honors with a B.A. in political science from Hampton University and earned her commission as a distinguished military graduate through the Reserve Officers Training Corps. She later completed an M.A. in management from the University of Maryland University College and a master’s in strategic studies at the U.S. Army War College.
In her civilian career, Maj. Gen. Birckhead began as an aide in the U.S. Senate in Washington, D.C. She later served as a state equal employment opportunity manager, Special Agent in Charge for the Defense Security Service, and Deputy Chief of Equal Opportunity and Civil Rights at the Office of Personnel Management, before joining the Department of the Interior. There, Maj. Gen. Birckhead served as a senior advisor for the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Trust Fund Administration, advising the bureau director on various issues related to the organization’s personnel, management policies, and organizational culture. ” When not serving in her official capacity, you may find her supporting flag placement at Veterans Cemetery with her two children on Veterans and Memorial Day, supporting the Salvation Army as a Bell Ringer for the Red Kettle Campaign or participating in veterans outreach, fundraising, food distribution, and support to Women Veterans Initiatives. She is a life member of the American Legion Post 166 and a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Maj. Gen. Birckhead is a married mother and two and a native of Maryland’s eastern shore. During her formative years on the shore, she was raised by her father, a Navy veteran, and her mother, a community leader and organizer who served as a Judge of the Worcester County Orphan’s Court.
