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An avid military history fan, Daniel K. Elder is a citizen scientist and historian with a passion for research and writing. A career soldier, he entered the United States Army in 1982 as a military logistician and served more than 26 years as a U.S. Army noncommissioned officer and executive leader. A 4-time Army Hall of Fame inductee and graduate of the Sergeants Major Academy, Dan served as the Army’s most senior enlisted sustainer as the command sergeant major of the U.S. Army Materiel Command. After a return to industry in 2008, today Dan leads Topsarge Business Solutions as the chief executive of his training and leader development company.

Dan has authored and edited six books on the Army noncommissioned officer. He is a 2018 General and Mrs. Matthew B. Ridgway Military History Research Grant awardee and serves as the Chairman of the Historical Commission for Bell County, Texas. He earned a Master of Science in Corporate and Organizational Communication from Northeastern University, Boston, MA, and is a doctoral student at Franklin University. He is a certified executive coach by the International Coach Federation and is a Principal Investigator conducting research in behavioral science on future leader initiatives for the Army Research Institute.

Dan volunteers his time as a Senior Fellow and Speaker for the Association of the United States Army and he is a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He serves as a board member for the City of Temple Chamber of Commerce and his local chapter of Rotary International. He has been married to the former Gloria Reese for over forty years; he and his wife have two daughters, Danielle and Courtney, and four grandchildren.

As a partner to the , Å·±¦ÓÎϷƽ̨ Press will aid AUSA’s educational mission by producing high-quality books to be designated as “AUSA Books.” These books will address such subjects as military land power and land warfare history, technology, combat, and strategy and tactics. This curated collection will serve to help and educate members of the U.S. Army, the Department of Defense, the AUSA, U.S. government officials, and the general public. To further these goals, AUSA will promote Å·±¦ÓÎϷƽ̨ Press’s AUSA Books by linking them to AUSA’s website, listing them in AUSA publications as a member benefit, and reviewing them in ARMY magazine or other AUSA publications.

“Dan Elder did a phenomenal job of researching and detailing the information in this book. While reading, I felt myself transported back to 1968 when I was a reluctant draftee who was selected to enter the NCOCC program. I always believed that the school was the main reason I survived my Vietnam tour. I recommend NCO School as a must read for military historians as well as anyone who had the unique experience of serving alongside the graduates of the NCOCC program.”  

– Arthur Wiknik, Jr., A proud Shake-N-Bake, NCOC Class 13-69 

“I am a fan of Dan Elder and admire & respect his impressive work. This is in my opinion his most important contribution to the long and storied history of the NCO corps to date. This book should be mandatory reading in both the officer and NCO education system.”  

– Jimmie W Spencer, CSM RET USA, Senior Fellow Association of the United States Army 

“NCO School is a superb piece of research and historical accounting of the evolution of noncommissioned officer education. Dan Elder has presented a thorough ‘roadmap’ that leads one to understanding US Army events and decisions that dictated the need for NCOs to be developed formally, and often quickly to meet the needs of the force... This book deserves to be read by anyone and everyone who has an interest in leadership.”  

– Bob Dare, CSM, U.S. Army Ret.  

Details coming September 2025.