Colonel James S. Ranger Roach, Jr., was commissioned an Infantry Officer upon graduation from Officer Candidate School 25 April 1967. His first duty assignment was as a Rifle Platoon Leader, C Company, 2d Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Kentucky. | His subsequent duty assignments include: Rifle Platoon Leader, B Company and Reconnaissance Platoon Leader, E Company, 2d Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, Pbuc Vin, Vietnam; Executive Officer, A Company, 1st Training Brigade, Fort Dix, New Jersey; Company Commander, D Company, 2d Battalion, 506th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, Gia Lee, Vietnam; Assistant Operations Officer, Headquarters, 3d Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Camp Evans, Vietnam; Company Commander, C Company, 3d Battalion, 187th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, Gia Lee, Vietnam; Senior Tactical Officer, Ranger Department, United States Army Infantry School, Fort Benning, Georgia; Commander, ODA 8, B Company and Commander A Company, 1st Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group, Bad Toelz, Germany; Operations Officer, Special Forces Detachment (Europe), Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri;  Chief, J-3 Current Operations, Headquarters, United States Southern Command, Quarry Heights, Panama; Chief, Infantry Brigade Trainers, United States Military Group, El Salvador, San Salvador, El Salvador; Commander, 2d Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group, Fort Lewis, Washington; Deputy Commander, Intelligence Support Activity, Washington, D.C. and Defense Attache, United States Embassy, Bogota, Columbia.