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University of North Georgia (°ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹Ù·½ÍøÕ¾) alumnus Maj. Gen. William K. Gayler, '88, has been named chief of staff for the U.S. Africa Command, headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. He was previously director of J-3 Operations/Cyber for the U.S. Africa Command.

A two-star general, Gayler is part of °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹Ù·½ÍøÕ¾'s class of 1988 that produced five Army generals, four of whom are on active duty.

Gayler was a Distinguished Military Graduate from °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹Ù·½ÍøÕ¾, where he earned a bachelor's degree in marketing. He earned a master's degree in military arts and sciences from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and a second master's degree in national security strategy from the National War College.

Among others, Gayler's key senior officer assignments include commanding general of the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence at Fort Rucker, Alabama; deputy commanding general, U.S. Army Europe; deputy commanding general (Support), 7th Infantry Division, Joint Base Lewis-McChord; chief of staff, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Kentucky; and commander, 101st Combat Aviation Regiment, Fort Campbell.

His major deployment history includes Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, 1990-1991; former Yugoslavia/Bosnia-Herzegovina, 1995-1996; Operation Iraqi Freedom I, 2003; Operation Iraqi Freedom V-VII, 2005-2006; and Operation Enduring Freedom X, 2010-2011.

Gayler is a Master Army Aviator and was a Standardization Instructor Pilot in the AH64D Longbow Apache, and also rated in the OH-58A/C Kiowa Warrior. Among his many awards and decorations are  the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star medal, and the Combat Action Badge.