Major General Greg Gardner

General Greg Gardner serves our state in several roles. He leads over 8,000 citizen soldiers and airmen of the Kansas Army and Air National Guard. He is the Director of Kansas Emergency Management and after 9-11 Governor Graves named him Director of Homeland Security.

Born in the Philippines, General Gardner grew-up around the world in an aviation family. Nearly 28 years ago he incorporated a flight school that later became a small cargo airline. Later he left civilian flying, joined the Hawaii Air National Guard and became a fighter pilot. The General has flown over 4,000 hours in 25 different aircraft including the B-1 bomber and fighters like the F-16 and F-4 Phantom. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management and a Masters in Human Resources Development.

General Gardner was a driving force behind our state’s preparation for bio and agro terrorism beginning years before 9-11. He is nationally recognized for his expertise in emergency management. In the national bio-terrorism exercise "Dark Winter, he was selected to represent the emergency management agencies of all 50 states. He helped write the agro-terrorism portion of the Governor’s Guide to Homeland Security recently released by National Governor’s Association. In September 2002, he participated in "Crimson Sky" an agro-terrorism exercise sponsored by the US Department of Agriculture where Kansas was only one of five states asked to participate. The General is a frequently requested panelist at regional and national conferences and think tanks.