SGM Carlos Salas, currently serves as the 1st Sgt. of the United States Army Europe and Africa Band and Chorus. SGM Carlos Salas is a native of Olathe Kansas and he enlisted in the Army in June of 2000 as an Army Musician. He attended basic training at Fort Knox Kentucky and advanced individual training at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Ft. Story, Virginia.
SGM Salas has served in every leadership position offered in CMF42 including section leader, group leader, music performance team leader, and senior enlisted conductor. He has also served as team leader, squad leader, platoon sergeant, detachment leader, and First Sergeant. In 2014, he was assigned to the United States Army School of Music where he served as ASI instructor, Senior Instructor, and Senior Leader Course Small Group Leader.
His stateside assignments include Fort Leonard Wood Missouri, Joint Base Lewis-McChord Washington, Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Ft. Story, Fort Carson Colorado, Fort Sill Oklahoma, Fort Bliss Texas, and Fort Liberty North Carolina. His overseas assignments include Schofield Barracks Hawaii, Camp Zama Japan and Sembach Germany. SGM Salas has deployed to Afghanistan, and Iraq. He also served in support of “Operation Tomodachi”, a humanitarian mission following the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan.
SGM Salas’s military education and training includes the Basic Leader Course, Air Assault Course, Basic Airborne Course, Unit Victim Advocate Course, Advanced Leader Course (Distinguished Leader Award, Honor Graduate), Senior Leader Course, Cadre Training Course, Basic Instructor Training Course, Faculty Development Program, Small Group Instructor Training Course, Master Resilience Training Course, First Sergeant Training Course, the Army Combat Fitness Test Level III Instructor Course, and he is a graduate of the Sergeants Major Course, Class 72. His civilian education includes a Bachelor of Science Degree in Health and Wellness from Purdue University Global.
SGM Salas’s awards and decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal (6OLC), Army Commendation Medal (6OLC), Army Achievement Medal (5OLC), Meritorious Unit Citation, Army Superior Unit Citation, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal (2 Campaign Stars), Humanitarian Service Medal, Military Outstanding Volunteer Medal, Combat Action Badge, Basic Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, and Basic Army Instructor Badge. In 2010, SGM Salas was selected to perform with the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force Central Band as part of a US/Japanese military musician exchange program. Additionally, he was selected as Army Band’s 2017 Senior NCO of the Year.
SGM Salas is married and two daughters.