Chaplain, Brig Gen David W. Kelley is the Deputy Chief of Chaplains, Department of the Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia. As a member of the special staff of the Chief of Staff of the Air Force and Chief of Staff of Space Operations, he assists the Chief of Chaplains in establishing guidance on all matters pertaining to the religious and moral welfare of Air and Space Force personnel and their dependents. Chaplain Kelley directs and maintains a trained, equipped, and professional Chaplain Corps of approximately 2,200 chaplains and religious affairs Airmen from the active duty and Air Reserve components. As a member of the Armed Forces Chaplain Board, he and other members advise the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff on religious, ethical and quality-of-life concerns.
Chaplain Kelley, in addition to pastoring for 12 years, served in the U.S. Army as a chaplain assistant (Light Infantry) and the Virginia National Guard (Army and Air). He entered the ordained ministry in 1991 and is endorsed by the North American Mission Board. Chaplain Kelley was commissioned in April 1998 and entered active duty in January 2004. He has served at the Wing, Command and Joint Staff levels. Prior to his current assignment, Chaplain Kelley served as the Director, Strategic Religious Affairs, Office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia.
EDUCATION
1987 U.S. Army Basic Training, Fort Dix, N.J.
1987 U.S. Army Chaplain Assistant Orientation Course, Fort Monmouth, N.J.
1989 Bachelor of Science, Christian Education, Cum Laude, Liberty University, Lynchburg, Va.
1991 Master of Arts in Religion, Summa Cum Laude, Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary, Lynchburg, Va.
1992 U.S. Army Primary Leadership Development Course, Fort Pickett, Va.
1995 U.S. Army Basic Non-Commissioned Officer Course, Fort Indiantown Gap, Pa.
1998 Commissioned Officer Training, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
1999 Orientation Chaplain Course, Chaplain Service Institute, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2001 Squadron Officer School, Air University, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence and residence
2002 Marine Corps Command and Staff College, Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., by correspondence
2006 Doctor of Ministry, Leadership, Liberty Theological Seminary, Lynchburg, Va.
2007 Intermediate Chaplain Course, Chaplain Service Institute, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2009 Air Command and Staff College, AU, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2010 Wing Chaplain Course, AFCCC, Fort Jackson, S.C.
2011 Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kan., by correspondence
2011 Master of Military Operational Art and Science, Air Command and Staff College, AU, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2012 Master of Theology, Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary, Lynchburg, Va.
2014 Air War College, AU, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2017 Master of Strategic Studies, Air War College, AU, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
2017 Master of Strategic Studies, Army War College, Department of Distance Education, Carlisle Barracks, Pa.
2018 Senior Chaplain Course, AFCCC, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. February 1987–February 1990, Chaplain Assistant, U.S. Army, 7th Infantry Division (L), Fort Ord, Calif.
2. March 1990–April 1998, Chaplain Assistant, Virginia Army National Guard, Headquarters 1st Brigade, 29th Infantry Division (L), Staunton, Va.
3. April 1998–January 2004, Protestant Chaplain, Virginia Air National Guard, 192nd Fighter Wing, Sandston, Va. (April 2002–June 2002, Chaplain, 363rd Air Expeditionary Wing, Prince Sultan Air Base, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; June 2002–October 2002, Chaplain, Air National Guard Crisis Action Team, Andrews Air Force Base, Md.; October 2002–August 2003, Staff Chaplain, HQ ACC/HC CAT, Langley AFB, Va.; August 2003-January 2004, Staff Chaplain, HQ CENTCOM/HC, MacDill AFB, Fla.--forward deployed to Joint Operations Center, Operations Chaplain, Camp Victory, Combined Joint Task Force-7, Baghdad, Iraq & Camp As-Sayliyah, Qatar)
4. January 2004–July 2006, Protestant Chaplain, 4th Fighter Wing, Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C. (September 2005–February 2006, Chaplain, 407th Air Expeditionary Group, Ali AB, Iraq)
5. July 2006–July 2008, Chaplain Service Officer, Chaplain Corps Expeditionary Readiness Training Center, 99th Ground Combat Training Squadron, Creech AFB, Nev.
6. July 2008–July 2010, Wing Chaplain, 432nd Wing and 432nd Air Expeditionary Wing, Creech AFB, Nev.
7. August 2010–June 2011, Student, Air Command & Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
8. June 2011–June 2012, Staff Chaplain, Resource Division, Air Force Chaplain Corps College, Fort Jackson, S.C.
9. July 2012–April 2013, Chair, Department of Chaplain Corps Leadership, AFCCC, Fort Jackson, S.C.
10. April 2013–August 2014, Branch Chief, Department of Chaplain Corps Leadership, AFCCC, Fort Jackson, S.C.
11. August 2014–July 2016, Wing Chaplain, 20th Fighter Wing, Shaw AFB, S.C. (October 2015–April 2016, Wing Chaplain, 455th AEW, Bagram AB, Afghanistan)
12. July 2016–May 2017, Student, Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala.
13. June 2017–May 2019, Deputy Command Chaplain, Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii
14. June 2019–July 2020, Command Chaplain, United Air Forces Central, Al Udeid AB, Qatar
15. July 2020–June 2023, Command Chaplain, Air Force Global Strike Command, Barksdale AFB, La.
16. June 2023–July 2024, Director, Strategic Religious Affairs, Office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
17. July 2024–present, Deputy Chief of Chaplains, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Defense Superior Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Meritorious Service Medal with silver and three oak leaf clusters
Virginia National Guard Bronze Star
(Current as of September 2024)