Joe Dougherty is Vice-President of the Armed Services Mutual Benefit Association and a retired Air Force Colonel who has served in numerous leadership positions on active duty at the squadron, group, wing, numbered air force, and MAJCOM level. He received his undergraduate degree in accounting from Baylor University in 1974 and was a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Program. He completed undergraduate pilot training at Laughlin AFB TX in 1975. Afterwards, he was assigned to Ellsworth AFB SD where he flew the B-52 G/H and T-38 aircraft. He later earned a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of South Dakota. Next, he was assigned to Castle AFB CA as a combat crew training instructor pilot. He has logged more than 4200 flying hours, 2,000 hours of which were as an instructor/evaluator pilot.
Afterwards, he was assigned to Headquarters Strategic Air Command, and served as Chief of the Strategic Warfare Center (SWC) Range Equipment Management Division, where he directed and managed the development, programmatics, and implementation of the SWC, a $1 billion acquisition program stressing combat tactics and composite force training. Returning to Castle AFB CA in January 1992, he served as the Wing Chief of Safety and Commander of the 93rd Operations Support Squadron (93 OSS), where his unit was recognized two years running (1993 and 1994) as the “Best OSS” in Air Combat Command. He completed his tour first as the Deputy Operations Group Commander, and then as the Deputy Support Group Commander during base realignment and closure and was the last service member to leave the base. His follow-on assignment was to Davis-Monthan AFB AZ, where he was Chief of Battle Management Integration, responsible for developing, integrating, and implementing operational programs to ensure the combat readiness of the USAF’s surveillance, reconnaissance, and command and control forces, over 90 aircraft.
Next, he was assigned to U.S. European Command in Stuttgart GE and was the USNATO Liaison Officer stationed in Brussels, Belgium. While there, he was the Command’s representative to the U.S. Ambassador, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (USNATO), and was instrumental in insuring that the Command’s senior leaders and staff received timely information on USNATO and NATO activities, which included the Kosovo conflict. In addition, he assisted new NATO members Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic “in-country” with development of their strategic planning process and implementing NATO membership requirements. He was also senior military advisor on two Office of Secretary of Defense sponsored Bilateral Working Groups to the Baltic States of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.
In 2001 he returned to the U.S. and assumed command as the Professor of Aerospace Studies at Auburn University, where he led a staff of 7 instructors and administrative personnel, charged with training, mentoring, educating, and motivating over 170+ officer candidates preparing them for leadership positions in the U. S. Air Force. While there, his unit earned the Air Force Association Award for being the Best AFROTC Detachment in Alabama. His detachment consistently ranked in the “Top 10%” nationally out of 144 detachments for corps size, scholarship recipients, and organizational awards. He is currently enrolled in the Auburn University Graduate School pursuing a PhD in Public Administration and Public Policy.
Following his retirement in December 2004, Colonel Dougherty was selected for Federal Civilian Service with AmeriCorps NCCC and was tasked with running the day-to-day operations of a non-profit residential program which included 20 staff members and instructors organized to provide service learning and leadership development for between 200 and 250 corps members, ages 18-24 operating across a 9 state area and the Gulf Coast. He oversaw the day-to-day campus life addressing and resolving problems related to quality of life, discipline, funding, budgeting, public relations, and capital improvements to facilities.
Colonel Dougherty is married to the former Linda Ann Partin. They have a son Ryan and a daughter Kaylyn. They also have a Samoyed named "Hayden."
