Col. Stoutenborough takes over as commander of Fort Sill’s Marine Artillery Detachment

The new commander of Fort Sills’ Artillery Detachment is ready to roll.

Col. Christopher “Derrick” Roberson from the U.S. Marine Corps on Friday morning relinquished command of Fort Sill’s Marine Artillery Detachment to Col. Jarrod W. Stoutenborough.

“I’m ready to roll, I’m ready to serve,” Stoutenborough said during the change of command ceremony at Fort Sill’s Old Post Quadrangle. The new commander has been in the Marines for almost 30 years and was deployed, among others places, to Iraq.

“Your reputation precedes you,” Brig. Gen. Farrell J. Sullivan, commander of the Marine’s Training Command, said during his remarks. “I’ll give you a lot of room to maneuver.”

“It’s heartbreaking to leave, but I know they are in good hands,” out-going commander Roberson said.

Stoutenborough will be able to build on significant changes that Roberson brought to the detachment. Sullivan emphasized during his remarks that Roberson had implemented important changes, for example regarding the curriculum.

Sullivan complimented Roberson for “rewriting the training readiness standards” and putting on a more “modern approach to learning” by establishing a simulation lab for more hands-on experience.

“You did what an O-6 needs to be doing,” Sullivan said. “You don’t join the Marines, you earn it. You have focused on what you needed, not only to survive on the battlefield, but to prevail.”

Roberson’s leadership style also was praised, with Sullivan highlighting Roberson’s patience and him getting out of the way for his soldiers. Incoming commander Stoutenborough intends to build on that.

“I call it empowerment,” he said, adding he would get out of the way while simultaneously giving his soldiers all the tools they need to succeed.