Your Weekend Reading Assignment: Meet Your New Harding Fellow

Please welcome CPT Steve Denaro to The Harding Project!

My name is CPT Steven Denaro, and I am an Adjutant General Officer currently assigned to the Integrated Personnel and Pay System – Army (IPPS-A) Program at the Pentagon, VA. Whether through professional exposure of 10 years serving our great Nation or cultural immersion across 71 countries, my experiences have reinforced a singular truth: the strength of any society or organization lies in its ability to share ideas, communicate, and grow collectively. I was exposed to this concept early-on being raised in the culturally diverse state of Florida – a place that I will forever appreciate and call home. For those familiar, the year-round sunshine also makes that an easy choice.

Go Gators, Go Cards

I attended the University of Florida (Go Gators), where I earned a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology, and commissioned as a branch-detailed Infantry Officer in 2014. In the formative years of my career as a Lieutenant, I was assigned to Fort Benning where I served as a Platoon Leader, Executive Officer, and Battalion S1 across Adjutant General, Armor, and Infantry Battalions. I attribute the diversity of working across different branches and positions as defining factors in developing my leadership style—one centered around unlocking potential in others regardless of background.

Upon completion of my Infantry branch-detail, I was promoted to Captain and became an Adjutant General Officer in 2018. My first assignment was to the 11^th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, where I served as the 3-43 ADA Battalion S1 for 36 months. In my spare time, I continued pursuing my passion of developing others at the University of Louisville (Go Cards), where I earned a Master of Science in Human Resources and Organization Development in 2022. My second assignment was Training with Industry, where I served at AdventHealth Corporate in Altamonte Springs, FL for 12 months as a Human Resources Manager. This assignment was a particularly rewarding opportunity in sharing and gaining professional human resources experience with my contemporaries in the private sector. I am currently serving as the Hire/Rehire Product Owner on the IPPS-A Program, where I manage the development of hire/rehire functionalities for all three Army components.

Photo courtesy of CPT Steve Denaro.

The Harding Fellowship

It was in this role that I discovered the Harding Fellowship. To me, written communication is a medium for sharing ideas. I’m passionate about helping those who don’t quite have the words to do that. So much that it’s safe to say I’ve earned the title of go-to editor amongst my peers after collectively reviewing college applications, essays, awards, evaluations, and letters of recommendation over the years.

It’s also safe to say that paying it forward eventually circles back. Last fall my return to the chilly DC weather from a few warm days in Florida, I received a text from one of those peers telling me about a writing opportunity within the Army. Upon reading the fellowship announcement, what I discovered that evening was so much more—the opportunity of a lifetime to connect and engage Sustainment Soldiers with their profession by capturing and sharing their stories and experiences.

Full disclosure, I was never the person to enter essay contests or write for fun; I could never sit still long enough. Conversely, I was the person out there exploring and communicating my experiences through storytelling. I began writing out of necessity as a Criminology and Human Resources major. I became passionate about writing upon understanding the impact that communicating ideas and experiences has in driving and inspiring change. As stewards of the profession, we have a duty to share our experience for the next generation. The privilege of being your Army Sustainment Harding Fellow is one of honor and incredible meaning to me for that reason. I look forward to representing the Sustainment community by sharing your story for the betterment of our future.