MAJOR GENERAL JOHN T. COYNE SELECTED AS DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE FOR RESERVE AFFAIRS
Secretary of Defense William Perry announced that Maj. Gen. John T. (Mike)
Coyne, U.S. Marine Corp Reserve, has been selected as the deputy assistant
secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs/chief of staff, effective October 16.
Coyne replaces Maj. Gen. William A. Navas Jr., who has been the deputy/chief of
staff since December 1994.
Coyne will serve as the senior deputy and chief of staff to the assistant
secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs in the formulation of policy and
overall supervision of the Department of Defense reserve components.
Prior to this assignment, Coyne served in a variety of senior level positions
in the Department of Defense: as commanding general, 4th Marine Division; as
deputy chief of staff for Manpower and Reserve Affairs; as a member of the
Reserve Forces Policy Board; as deputy commanding general, Marine Corps Combat
Development Command; and as the assistant deputy chief of staff for Plans,
Policies and Operations, Headquarters Marine Corps.
Born April 25, 1937 in Marcellus, N. Y., Coyne began his military career in
1959 as an enlisted member of the New York Air National Guard. He was
subsequently commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps in 1962 and
served on active duty from August 1964 until August 1967. Upon his release
from active duty, Coyne served in Marine Corps Reserve units, holding command
and staff billets of ever-increasing responsibility. He was promoted to the
rank of major general on March 3, 1992.
His decorations include: the Meritorious Service Medal; Meritorious Unit
Commendation; National Defense Service Medal; Organized Marine Corps Reserve
Medal; Humanitarian Service Medal; and the Armed Forces Reserve Medal.
Beside his undergraduate degree in liberal arts from LeMoyne College, Coyne
holds a juris doctor degree from the Georgetown Law Center. He attended
numerous military schools, including: National Defense University flag officer
Capstone course; the Command and Staff College; Navy War College (defense
economic course); Army War College (senior reserve component officer course);
Naval Justice School; and the Amphibious Warfare School.
Coyne is currently a trustee of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College
Foundation and the Marine Corps Reserve Officer Association Foundation. He
previously served as a director of the Marine Corps Association and the Marine
Corps Historical Foundation. He is past national president of the Marine Corps
Reserve Officers Association.
Prior to his retirement from the practice of law in 1994, Coyne was a partner
in the law firm of Jordan, Coyne, and Savits in Washington, D.C. He is married
to the former Rosemary Cirando of Syracuse, N.Y.
