Rob Simmons - Military Career

Military Career

Born in New York City, Simmons attended Haverford College, graduating in 1965. Simmons enlisted in the United States Army as a Private, serving in active duty from 1965 to 1969. Simmons graduated from Infantry Officer Candidate School in 1967, and became a commissioned officer. He fought in the Vietnam War, and earned two Bronze Star Medals for his service. He was in Vietnam for 19 months.

After his active duty service, Simmons served in the United States Army Reserve as a Military Intelligence Officer from 1969 to 2003, retiring at the rank of full colonel. Simmons led the 434th Military Intelligence Detachment (Strategic) affiliated with Yale University, and in this capacity led the writing of the "Open Source Intelligence Guide for the Military Intelligence Officer." Under his command, the unit was subsequently selected as the best small unit in the U.S. Army Reserve in 1996 by the Reserve Officers Association.