From corporal to chief: Ramirez builds a career in Signal

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany - Jessie M. Ramirez was preparing to apply for Officer Candidate School when her mentor suggested becoming a warrant officer instead.

She almost chose not to apply. The corporal had a computer science degree and a plan, but little understanding of warrant service.

Conversations with her mentor, Derick Struble, changed her mind. In 2023, she applied through a pilot program that offered junior Signal Soldiers an opportunity to become warrant officers.

Ramirez was promoted to chief warrant officer 2 during an Oct. 1, 2026, ceremony at Millrinder Hall on Panzer Kaserne.

As a data operations warrant officer assigned to the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, Ramirez tests communications services with NATO partners and maintains systems that help logistics personnel track assets across the theater.

Born in the United States and raised in Ecuador, Ramirez wanted to join the Army after high school. Her grandfather and three uncles had served in Ecuador's military. Her father once told her she would end up in the military because of her discipline. Her mother asked her to finish college first.

Ramirez completed her computer science degree in Ecuador and enlisted at 25. After discussing her background and available jobs with a recruiter, she chose to become an information technology specialist.

Her first assignment took her to Camp Humphreys, South Korea. Her second brought her to the Joint Mission Operations Center-Georgia at Fort Gordon, where she worked as a system administrator supporting cyber operations.

She also became a trainer for a platform used by the organization. Ramirez said that responsibility helped build her confidence and introduced her work to leaders who later supported her application.

Watching Struble work and discussing his responsibilities helped her understand warrant service. He encouraged her to apply and helped her prepare her packet.

Chief Warrant Officer 5 Brandon Wilson, senior technical advisor for U.S. Army Europe-Africa G-6, was involved in the Signal accession process when Ramirez applied.

Wilson said the pilot allowed qualified junior Signal Soldiers to apply without the years of NCO evaluations expected through the traditional pathway. Applicants still needed to meet technical requirements.

To identify candidates, Wilson relied on warrant officers who observed Soldiers' work firsthand.

"I trust boots on the ground," Wilson said.

Struble's endorsement carried weight because Wilson knew him as a former student. Ramirez's education, test scores and endorsements from senior leaders also distinguished her application, Wilson said.

While preparing her application, Ramirez worked as a translator during a temporary duty assignment. She said she received a letter of recommendation from Maj. Gen. William Hartman, then commander of the Cyber National Mission Force.

Ramirez prepared for warrant officer training by researching requirements, asking questions and working with NCOs on her physical readiness. Public speaking and the expectations of her new role were among her concerns.

When selection results were released, she was at home trying to access them online. Before she could confirm the result herself, a leader called to congratulate her.

Her husband, John, was the first person she told.

Becoming a warrant officer required another adjustment. Ramirez said she had to move beyond waiting for instructions and take responsibility for identifying and solving problems.

She also learned that technical expertise did not mean having every answer.

"You're not going to know everything," Ramirez said.

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jonathan Davis, a data operations warrant officer assigned to the 21st TSC communications team, said he reinforced that expectation when she arrived. He mentored her while assigning projects that challenged her to develop.

One assignment placed Ramirez in charge of the team's technical preparation and execution during Coalition Warrior Interoperability eXploration 2026, or CWIX, in Poland, Davis said.

She configured email and user-access services for testing with multinational partners. The tests examined whether personnel using different nations' systems could communicate and collaborate.

The work required Ramirez to apply her technical knowledge beyond the systems used by her own command, testing connections with partners whose personnel would need to work together.

"Jessie was instrumental," Davis said, crediting her work throughout the three-warrant-officer team's planning cycle and execution.

Her responsibilities also include developing servers that support the command's tactical communications and maintaining applications used by logistics personnel, Davis said. Those applications help personnel track and display information about assets moving through the theater.

While handling those duties, Ramirez completed a graduate degree in cloud computing, according to Davis.

At her promotion ceremony, Ramirez thanked her family, Soldiers, peers and mentors who had taught, challenged and supported her. She also recognized her husband's patience, including the evenings when she came home still thinking about work.

"This promotion belongs to you too," she told him.

Ramirez now helps other Soldiers understand the responsibilities and opportunities of warrant service. She connected an NCO interested in the 255S specialty with warrant officers who could share their experiences and provide guidance.

She also mentors a specialist interested in becoming a warrant officer, sharing what she has learned about the role, technical leadership and taking responsibility for solving problems.

In Georgia, a mentor helped Ramirez understand a career she had nearly passed up. Now she helps other Soldiers explore that same opportunity.