The Secretary of the Army announced today that the National Research Council will perform an independent assessment of the Army’s body armor testing, following last month’s recommendation by the Government Accountability Office for an independent review.

The quality and readiness of the Army Guard is in the hands of its senior leadership, the Army Guard’s top officer told more than 2,000 officers and senior noncommissioned officers here today.

The Army today released suicide data for the month of October.

For more than 100 years, there has been a hotly contested rivalry that boils over to an all out war for three hours one fall Saturday afternoon in November.

The National Guard is a vital partner in the federal response to natural or manmade disasters, the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency said here today.

Though the National Guard has a role in reconstruction missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, it’s a temporary one, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates told an audience at the Joint Senior Leadership Conference at the National Harbor yesterday.

“Adding Value to America” was the theme for more than 2,000 of the National Guard’s senior Army and Air Force leaders from across the nation who gathered at the National Harbor to kick off their first Joint Senior Leadership Conference.

It should have been a joyous time. But Sheri Hall could tell something was wrong with her husband, Army Maj. Jeff Hall, at the hangar during his welcome home ceremony. “His eyes were dead,” she said.

The Departments of Defense (DoD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) announced today that beginning in January 2010, the Disability Evaluation System (DES) pilot will expand to an additional six installations across the country.

The National Guard can play an important role in spreading the news about the Veterans Affairs Department’s new programs to veterans in their communities, VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki told a National Guard conference today.

Based on an independent study by the Institute of Medicine last month, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki has directed broader health coverage from his department for Vietnam War veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange.

The secretary of veterans affairs today announced the framework of a bold initiative to end homelessness among veterans within five years.

It's hard to predict how a child will react to having a parent deployed in a war zone, the Marine Corps’ family advocacy manager said here today on the last day of the 2009 Department of Defense Child Development Conference.

President Barack Obama pledged his support of military members and their families and said Americans have a “solemn obligation” to preserve their well-being in his proclamation declaring November as Military Family Month.

The Military Health System will host a Web-based, town hall-style meeting Nov. 10 from 3 to 4 p.m. EST to respond to questions about H1N1 influenza.

As filming for Sesame Workshop’s latest “Talk, Listen, Connect,” video got under way here yesterday, it became clear that while it’s not always sunny on Sesame Street, ultimately the clouds can be swept away.

The Defense Department is committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for military families, the director of the department’s Family Advocacy Program said in observance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.