Maj. Gen. Paul Stanton, Cyber Center of Excellence and Fort Gordon commanding general, was promoted from brigadier general in a ceremony at Signal Theater on Friday.
Lt. Gen. Maria Barrett, U.S. Army Cyber Command commanding general, presided over the ceremony.
Reflecting on Stanton’s career, Barrett said that the work he did as deputy director of operations with U.S. Army Cyber Command, Fort Meade, Maryland, was key in shaping ARCYBER.
“We would not be here doing some of the things that we’re doing today without that early work,” Barrett said.
Adding to the many reasons he was well-deserving of a promotion, Barrett went on to say that Stanton “applied himself through positions that he [held] in terms of coming up with the readiness framework by which we would understand where we stood … and really understand what kind of combat power we had.”
Stanton went on to serve as commander of the newly-formed Cyber Protection Brigade, where doctrine was in the process of being written and its structure had not yet been finalized.
“The type of work that was done during his tenure was really formative,” Barrett said.
And in the midst of a pandemic, when the workforce was required to telework, again, Stanton adapted, rose to the challenge while maintaining a mission-ready workforce, and proved himself capable of taking on his current role as commanding general.
“You would think that he had been doing this for three years and not just one year,” Barrett said.
Humbled by Barrett’s remarks, Stanton said he would not be where he is today if not for leaders who saw his potential and invested in him. Surrounded by “talent from the beginning,” Stanton shared statistics indicating he served under several highly successful officers and enlisted personnel who became generals and command sergeants major.
“At every stage of my career, senior leaders reached down and pulled me over the wall, because they thought that I had the potential,” Stanton said. “None of those officers at the time knew that they were going to go on to become generals. We all have to recognize that we’re being watched, and we have to be that guiding example for those underneath us.”
Shifting focus, Stanton went on to thank his family. Stanton's father, a retired Army lieutenant general, and his mother, raised him with the “right mix of setting conditions without pressure,” Stanton said, adding that there was never an expectation from his parents to achieve the same rank as his father. Turning to his wife, Nomi, and their three children, Stanton said he could not be more proud of them and thankful for their support. Despite none of them following Stanton’s footsteps in the military, each is pursuing higher education in careers that will ultimately serve others.
“What I’m most proud of in my kids is that they are dedicating themselves to something higher than their own individual wants and desires,” Stanton said.
As for his wife, Stanton said their children would not be who they are today without her constant example of selflessness through her raising them and involvement in the community.
“She motivates me on a daily basis with her endless drive to try to help those around her without seeking any recognition from anybody else,” Stanton said. “She dedicates herself every day to try to make our community better.”
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