Shaler High graduate Major General Harry E. Miller honored for service

Army Major General Harry E. Miller Jr., a '76 graduate of Pittsburgh"s Shaler Area High School, received the

Distinguished Service Medal for his service as Commander of the 42nd Infantry Division, during an August 12 ceremony in Garden City, N.Y. Miller, who is currently serving on active duty with the Defense Intelligence Agency in Washington D.C., commanded the division from April 2013 until February of this year. The 42nd Infantry Division, headquartered in Troy NY, is one of eight National Guard Divisions and consists of subordinate brigades from New York, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine and New Jersey.

Miller was recognized during a ceremony being held to mark the 100th anniversary of the 42nd Infantry Division's activation. Nicknamed the Rainbow Division, the division was organized from National Guard units of 26 states and the District of Columbia during World War I. Then Major Douglas MacArthur gave the division its name when he said it would reach across the country like a rainbow.

After graduating from high school, Miller attended Valley Forge Military Jr. College from 1976-1978 and received his commission in May 1980 through the ROTC program at Washington and Jefferson College. He later earned a Master's in Business Administration from St. Martin's College and a Master's in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College.

He served on active duty for over twelve-years with assignments to the 1st Armored Division, the 82nd Airborne Division, and the 1st Special Forces Group. In 1995 General Miller joined the New Hampshire National Guard where he served as Commander of the 54th Troop Command, as well as Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, and Director of Joint Operations. After being promoted to Brigadier General he served as the Director of Doctrine, Training, and Force Development on the Joint Staff of the National Guard Bureau in Arlington, VA.

Miller has served two combat tours in Iraq. During his first tour he was assigned to the Iraq Assistance Group as the senior advisor to Iraqi Security Forces along the Iraq/Iran border. During his second tour he served with the 5th Special Forces Group and the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Arabian Peninsula as the senior advisor to the Commanding General Multinational Corps Iraq. From September 2010 to January 2012, he served as Senior Commander, Fort Drum, NY and the 10th Mountain Division. He and his family reside in Nashua, NH.