Brigadier General Tracey Poirier is currently working part time as the Director of the Joint Staff for the Vermont National Guard.
She graduated from Norwich University in 1996 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and Media Communications. She went on to complete her graduate education at Oxford University in England as a Rhodes Scholar earning two master’s degrees, one in Anthropology and one in Human Resource Management.
Brig. Gen. Poirier enlisted into the US Army Reserve in July 1991 where she served as a Unit Supply Specialist in Wellsville, New York. Her enlistment was shortened upon earning a United States Marine Corps Scholarship to attend Norwich University from which she received her commission in May 1996. During her eight years of active duty with the United States Marine Corps, she found herself stationed at Marine Forces Europe; Quantico, Virginia; and Camp Smith, Hawaii where she deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Following her active duty service, Brig. Gen. Poirier joined the Vermont Army National Guard in 2006, serving in several roles. Those roles include Company Commander, Tactical Information Operations Course Instructor, 124th Regimental S-1, 86th IBCT (MTN) Brigade Rear-Detachment S-1, Support Operations Officer for 186th Brigade Support Battalion, and Commander of the Brigade Support Battalion from September 2013 to April 2016. She graduated from the US Army War College as a Carlisle Scholar and Distinguished Graduate in June 2017. She returned from a deployment to Iraq with Joint Special Operations Command in 2018 where she served as Chief of Staff and took command of 124th Regional Training Institute, Vermont Army National Guard from April 2019 to April 2021. In January 2021, Brig. Gen. Poirier was assigned to serve full-time as the Chief of Staff for the Vermont Army National Guard and served in that role until May 2022.
In her civilian career, Brig. Gen. Poirier began working at Norwich University in 2007 and served as the Director of Annual Giving and the Director of the International Center. She became the Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs in 2013 and served in that role until she re-entered active duty in 2021.
She resides in Barre Town with her husband, Col. Len Poirier, and their four children Emma, Beth, Will and John.