The Grio's 100 Black History Makers In The Making

TheGrio's 100: Command Sgt. Maj. Teresa King, cutting drill sergeants 'no slack'

7:50 AM on 02/02/2010

Join Our Mailing List

Related News: Charles Dickens characters: Were they drawn from real-life black Londoners?; Schomberg Center director Dr. Khalil Muhammad: Black history is 'life saving'; Underground Railroad museum faces closure due to financial trouble

Share Bar

You can call her the drill sergeant's drill sergeant. Command Sergeant Major Teresa King is the commander of the U.S. Army's Drill Sergeant School at Fort Jackson in South Carolina.

Appointed to the post in September 2009, she is the first female to lead the facility. Last year, the Army consolidated all of its drill schools into this single campus, so King now oversees drill sergeant training for the entire U.S. Army.

King was born the eighth of 12 children to sharecropper parents near Fort Bragg, N.C.
While growing up, King declined her mother's cooking lessons, opting to drive her dad's tractor instead. If her siblings got into trouble, she offered to take their spankings. She credits her late father's stern discipline with teaching her responsibility.

WATCH TERESA KING'S PROFILE ON THE NBC NIGHTLY NEWS:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Her first major test came when she became the first female First Sergeant to oversee the heart and soul of Army war-fighters: the 18th Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, N.C. On 9/11, she was responsible for 500 paratroopers, 22 sergeant majors, 22 colonels and three general officers.

When she was chosen to lead Drill Sergeant School, it was her approach to "the business of taking civilians and making them into soldiers," that helped her get the job, her battalion commander Lieutenant Colonel Dave Wood told the Associated Press.

"She's got this unique way of dealing with soldiers where she can be correcting them, but it's in a manner that they're wanting to please her and wanting to do the right thing," Wood said. "It's not degrading to them."

King feels the full weight of her new post. "[Americans] have freely given us their sons and daughters," King said on the Army's Web site. "They trust us to train them and keep them safe. I will not disappoint them or betray this trust."

WATCH TERESA KING DISCUSS BLACK HISTORY MONTH

CLICK HERE TO SEE PROFILES ON ALL OF THEGRIO'S 100

SEE MORE OF THEGRIO'S BLACK HISTORY COVERAGE HERE

Follow theGrio on Facebook & Twitter!

You can call her the drill sergeant's drill sergeant. Command Sergeant Major Teresa King is the commander of the "U.S. Army's Drill Sergeant School":http://www.jackson.army.mil/units/drill/index.html at Fort Jackson in South Carolina. Appointed to the post in September 2009, she is the first female to lead the facility. Last year, the Army consolidated all of its drill schools into this single campus, so King now oversees drill sergeant training for the entire "U.S. Army":http://www.GoArmy.com. King was born the eighth of 12 children to sharecropper parents near Fort Bragg, N.C. While growing up, King declined her mother's cooking lessons, opting to drive her dad's tractor instead. If her siblings got into trouble, she offered to take their spankings. She credits her late father's stern discipline with teaching her responsibility. WATCH TERESA KING'S PROFILE ON THE "NBC NIGHTLY NEWS ":http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/ns/nightly_newsHERE:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

King enlisted into the Army straight out of high school. The 29-year veteran, who's earned the nickname "Sergeant Major No Slack," began her career as a postal clerk in Germany. Later, she went to drill sergeant school. King has served in South Korea, Europe, at "NATO":http://www.nato.int/ and at the "Pentagon":http://www.pentagon.afis.osd.mil/ after being handpicked by then-Defense Secretary Dick Cheney. Her first major test came when she became the first female First Sergeant to oversee the heart and soul of Army war-fighters: the 18th Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, N.C. On 9/11, she was responsible for 500 paratroopers, 22 sergeant majors, 22 colonels and three general officers. When she was chosen to lead Drill Sergeant School, it was her approach to "the business of taking civilians and making them into soldiers," that helped her get the job, her battalion commander Lieutenant Colonel Dave Wood told the Associated Press. "She's got this unique way of dealing with soldiers where she can be correcting them, but it's in a manner that they're wanting to please her and wanting to do the right thing," Wood said. "It's not degrading to them." King feels the full weight of her new post. "[Americans] have freely given us their sons and daughters," King said on the "Army's Web site":http://www.army.mil/standto/archive/2009/09/25/. "They trust us to train them and keep them safe. I will not disappoint them or betray this trust." **WATCH TERESA KING DISCUSS BLACK HISTORY MONTH**