Rack Builder: U.S. Army Awards and Decorations Program
Rack builder: The U.S. Army Awards and Decorations Program is a system of award rankings designed to motivate soldiers to higher levels of service and performance. The Military Awards Branch is the only Army organization which is designed to regulate the Army Awards and Decorations Program, making sure that correct policies are established and enforced.
The U.S. Army is the sole branch of the military which regulates that individual and unit awards must be worn separately, on opposite sides of the military uniform. This means that decorations given to an entire Army unit, such as the Valorous Unit Award and the Army Superior Unit Award must worn on the opposite side of the military uniform of a soldier than individual decorations, such as the Army Achievement Medal and the Distinguished Service Cross. No other branch of the U.S. military requires separation of individual and unit awards on a soldiers uniform.
The highest medal to be given out to any member of the United States military, including Army personnel, is the Medal of Honor. One must risk his or her life above and beyond the call of duty, in a gallant manner, while facing an enemy of the United States.
The Distinguished Service Cross is the second highest individual award that can be given to a soldier in the U.S. Army. This award is given to individual soldiers who risk their lives with acts of bravery which particularly distinguishes them from their comrades. This is only awarded to persons of incredible gallant acts.
The Army Achievement Medal is another decoration given to individual soldiers. This award is only for junior officers, so only lower ranking personnel receive it. Also, this award can only be given at the discretion of local commanders, which means that it can be received for a wide variety of achievements.
The Soldier's Medal is an award given to individual Army personnel who have distinguished themselves with acts of heroism which do not involve actual combat with enemy forces. This medal is given to a soldier for risking his life in order to save the life of another.
These are only a few examples of awards given out by the U.S. Army in order to motivate soldiers and units to perform better and more bravely. Because these decorations are not given out lightly, they encourage the heroic spirits of U.S. Army men and women to reach higher levels of achievement..