Lieutenant Colonel Mark W. Pollak is the Deputy Commander and Deputy District Engineer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District.
Lt. Col. Pollak joined USACE in 2021 and was first assigned as a research engineer to the USACE Engineer Research and Development Center in Vicksburg, MS. He assumed responsibility as deputy commander of the Baltimore District in July 2024. His responsibilities include supporting the commander and overseeing district operations and a workforce of about 1,200 federal employees.
Lt. Col. Pollak graduated from Virginia Tech in 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. The following year, he completed the Army Engineer School’s Engineer Officer Basic Course at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. When he returned to Fort Leonard Wood in 2011, Lt. Col. Pollak completed the Engineer Captain’s Career Course and his master’s degree in engineering management from the Missouri University of Science and Technology. In 2019, he graduated from the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Lt. Col. Pollak is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Tennessee.
After completing EOBC, Lt. Col. Pollak was assigned to the 4th Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kansas. He deployed to Tooz, Iraq where he served as a combat engineer platoon leader. In 2011, he served with USACE for the first time as an Operations Officer and Mechanical Engineer at the Fort Campbell Resident Office, part of the Louisville District. In 2014, he assumed command of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 27th Engineer Battalion (Combat)(Airborne) at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Following command, he served as an Assistant Professor of Military Science, Army ROTC at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. After completing CGSC in 2019, he served as Battalion Operations Officer and Executive Officer, 8th Engineer Battalion, 2nd ABCT, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas. During this time, his unit was deployed to Poland as a regionally aligned force unit.
Lt. Col. Pollak’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, four Meritorious Service Medals, three Army Commendation Medals with 2 OLC, Army Achievement Medal, Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, and the Operation Iraqi Freedom Campaign Medal, and the Army Engineer Association’s Bronze de Fleury Medal.
Lt. Col. Pollak is a native of Chesterfield, Virginia, married to his wife, Claire, and has three daughters.