Colonel Estee S. Pinchasin became the 69th Commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, on July 16, 2021, where she commands a workforce of approximately 1,200 employees, overseeing a multibillion-dollar program that provides vital engineering, design, construction and water resources management solutions to the mid-Atlantic region. The district’s area of responsibility spans the Susquehanna River, Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay watersheds, and 7,000 miles of coastline.
Prior to command, she served as the Engineer Branch Chief in the U.S. Army Human Resources Command from August 2018 to August 2020, overseeing the assignment and talent management of 4,300 active-duty Engineer Officers and Warrant Officers.
This is COL Pinchasin’s third assignment with USACE. Previously, she was assigned to the 249th Engineer Battalion (Prime Power) at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, deploying several times in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. From January 2003 to July 2006, she served as the Battalion Logistics Officer, Commander of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Battalion Liaison Officer in Iraq, and Battalion Adjutant. Following graduate school and promotion to major, she served as the Area Engineer for the New York City Metro Area Office in the New York District. From New York, she deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan, to serve as Area Officer-In-Charge for the Kandahar Area Office in Afghanistan Engineer District – South.
COL Pinchasin is originally from Long Beach, New York, and commissioned as an Engineer Officer through the Reserve Officer Training Corps in July 1998. As a lieutenant, she served as a Platoon Leader, Training Officer, and Company Executive Officer in the 30th Engineer Battalion (Topographic) at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Upon promotion to captain, she completed the Aviation Captain’s Career Course at Fort Rucker, Alabama, and the Combined Arms and Services Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
From June 2011 to June 2013, she served as the Operations Officer and Battalion Executive Officer of the 84th Engineer Battalion (Construction Effects) at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. COL Pinchasin returned to Fort Leavenworth to attend the School of Advanced Military Studies and was subsequently assigned to I Corps Headquarters at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. From August 2014 to June 2016, she served as a Corps Plans Officer followed by Deputy G35 (Future Operations). From July 2016 to July 2018, she commanded the 19th Engineer Battalion (Construction Effects), 20th Engineer Brigade, XVIII Airborne Corps, at Fort Knox, Kentucky.
COL Pinchasin earned a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science from Boston University, Master of Science in Civil Engineering from Stanford University, a Master of Military Arts and Science from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and a Master of Science in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College. COL Pinchasin holds a Project Management Professional Certification.
COL Pinchasin’s awards and decorations include two Bronze Star Medals, six Meritorious Service Medals, three Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, NATO Medal, Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge and the Army Engineer Association’s Bronze de Fleury Medal.