Brigadier general’s message to grads: ‘Be the best version of you’

Brig. Gen. Jacob Middleton is the commanding general for U.S. Space Forces in Europe and Space Forces Africa (SPACEFOREUR-AF) stationed at Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

Known as the “Global Gateway,” Ramstein Air Base acts as the primary hub for U.S. military logistics, airlift and operations in Europe and Africa. It houses more than 50,000 Americans, constituting the largest U.S. military community outside the United States.

At SPACEFOREUR-AF, Middleton helps plan, coordinate and conduct employment of space operations across the full range of military operations, including security cooperation, in support of U.S. European Command and U.S. Africa Command objectives.

It’s no easy job, but he praises Augusta University for giving him the foundation he needed to grow and eventually step into this vital role with strength and confidence.

“When I graduated from Augusta University in 1991, I felt like I had the foundational skills to do anything I wanted to do and be anything I wanted to be,” Middleton said. “Not that learning had stopped, or work had stopped, but I think what that university does is it prepares you for life – regardless of your chosen discipline – better than any other university, in my opinion.”

Augusta University is honored to have Middleton as the keynote speaker at its Undergraduate Commencement Ceremonies on Friday, May 8 at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. in the Augusta Marriott at the Convention Center.

Finding his footing on the court

Throughout his life, Middleton has known the value of hard work. 

“I grew up in Gainesville, Florida, but had a lot of family in Walterboro, South Carolina, so I spent a lot of time there, too,” Middleton said. “My family wasn’t the wealthiest, so – as I’m sure a lot of people can attest to – I feel like when you grow up poor, you learn a lot about hard work.” 

After graduating from high school, he started his college career at Paine College but eventually transferred to then-Augusta College to play basketball for former coach Clint Bryant. At the time, current men’s basketball coach Dip Metress was an assistant coach for the Jaguars along with then-assistant coach Gerald White.

“They all really took the time to teach me the core values that have helped me get to where I am today,” Middleton said. “I think when I was younger, I was just one of those who followed and complained. Every little roadblock seemed like the world was coming to an end. But between my parents and Coach Bryant and Dip and Gerald White, and many of my professors in Augusta, they told me in no uncertain terms, ‘Life is not fair. You can complain about it, or you can do something about it.’”

Middleton said he quickly learned that being part of the solution not only improved the entire situation for the greater good, but it also helped steer him in the right direction and make him a better person. 

“One of the main sayings that I have is, ‘Hopefully, I’m better today than I was yesterday and better tomorrow than I am today,’” Middleton said. “I learned all of these things going to school at Augusta University.”

When Middleton suited up for then-Augusta College to play basketball in the early 1990s, Metress said he immediately noticed Middleton was a solution-oriented person.

“He was very driven when he came to play for us,” Metress said. “He was always seeking solutions to problems. He was also extremely analytical and had a strong leadership presence about him.”

The magic of mentors

Middleton said mentors like Bryant, Metress and White helped shape him because they weren’t afraid to tell him what he needed to hear. 

“I think the significant part of what you’re really looking for in a mentor is someone who can see things in you that you can’t see yourself,” he said. “You’re not looking for somebody to always tear you down, but I think a good mentor can actually give you feedback that is helpful in a way that you are willing to hear it and digest it. So, they’re not a ‘yes’ person, but they’re not beating you down either. They’ve figured out a way to give you information so you can be the best version of you that you can be.”

Playing for the Jaguars taught him life lessons that he never forgot, Middleton said. 

“Learning how to lose is huge and being a good winner is also huge,” he said. “I really believe that what I needed was to take the raw version of who I was and begin shaping me into somebody that this country is comfortable with me speaking on their behalf, and that started at Augusta University.”

While he was learning to be a leader on the court, Middleton said he was also building his future in the classroom. 

“The professors at Augusta University took the time to not only teach you, but made you believe that you could be better than you were at that time,” he said. “There’s nothing I said to my professors at 18, 19 or 20 years old that I wanted to do that they looked at me and said, ‘Yeah, I don’t think you could do that.’”

The professors were encouraging, but also honest with him, Middleton said. 

“They would say, ‘You’ve got to study harder than you’re studying right now,’” Middleton said, laughing. “Because, honestly, I really didn’t like studying. But having people around me who were like, ‘You want to be a general one day? Yes, you can do it,’ was incredible.” 

“There were people at Augusta University who believed I could achieve things when they had no reason whatsoever to believe I could achieve it. I hadn’t done anything,” he added. “I was hardheaded. I didn’t know anything and thought I knew everything. And I didn’t work as hard as I should have, but the university professors believed in me. They would always take the time to read my papers, talk to me long after class was over, and tell me what I needed to do to get there.”

Taking flight in the Air Force

Middleton graduated from then-Augusta College as a double major in psychology and sociology. He enlisted in the Air Force in August 1992, received his commission through the Officer Training School in November 1998 and became a career space and missile operations officer. 

“This is now my 34th year in the military ,” Middleton said, who went on to receive four master’s degrees from Troy University, George Washington University, School of Advanced Air and Space Studies at Maxwell Air Force Base and the National Defense University. “After I graduated from Officer Training School, I did intercontinental ballistic missiles. I was an operator in nuclear weapons for four years, taught at ROTC at Tuskegee for a couple of years, and went to the Air Force Intern Program at the Pentagon.”

Middleton then spent the next few years serving in operations with the National Reconnaissance Office and Space Operations at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado. He transitioned to the Space Force in 2021 and was eventually chosen to be a senior congressional advisor for the chief of space operations and served two tours working with Congress. He then worked directly with the White House and then-Vice President Kamala Harris.

“Vice President Harris actually did my promotion ceremony to one star,” he said. “They then sent me to the joint staff, and then I took command over here in Germany where I have three four-star bosses.”

These days, Middleton travels extensively, representing the United States and speaking with other countries about the Space Force. 

“I always wonder what my psychology and sociology professors or Dip or Coach Bryant would say when I first came to Augusta, if they knew one day I’d be representing the United States at Luxembourg or Poland or Romania or Kenya,” Middleton said, laughing. “I don’t think they thought I’d be doing that, but what I like to tell them is that they did a good job educating and mentoring me, so that’s why I’m here.”