Deputy Director for Engineering and Construction

LTC Daren Payne grew up in Stafford County Virginia and began his military career as a cadet at the Virginia Military Institute where he was commissioned into the US Army Corps of Engineers in 1990.

His early assignments included the 44^th Engineer Battalion, 2^nd Infantry Division in Korea; 46^th Engineer Battalion, 1^st Aviation Brigade (Air Assault) at Fort Rucker, AL and service as company commander with the 11^th Engineer Battalion, 24^th Infantry Division and 3^rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, GA.  Following company command he served at Fort Hood, TX and at the US Army Evaluation Center in Alexandria, VA until his deployment to Iraq with US Army Corps of Engineers in support of the 1^st Infantry Division in 2004-2005.

In 2005 LTC Payne returned to the 46^th Engineer Battalion, 20^th Engineer Brigade at Fort Polk, LA where he served as Battalion S-3 and Executive Officer during Hurricane Katrina and Rita recovery and the unit’s deployment to Ramadi, Iraq 2005-2006.  In 2007 he became the Deputy Commander for the USACE Mobile District deploying again to Iraq in 2010.    

In 2011 LTC Payne assumed command of 1/345^th Engineer Training Support Battalion at Fort Jackson, SC and relocated the unit to Camp Atterbury, IN where he oversaw training of over 3,000 soldiers deploying to Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Africa.  His final assignment in the Army was Division Engineer for the 3^rd Infantry Division where he participated in Hurricane Matthew response efforts as well as missions to Afghanistan and Qatar in 2015.

Retiring from the Army in 2017, LTC Payne accepted a position as a project manager in the VMI construction office.  In 2019 he was promoted to Deputy Director of Construction prior to assuming his current role in 2022 as Director for Construction and Engineering. 

LTC Payne’s military awards include the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, the Airborne, Air Assault and Combat Action badges. He completed the Engineer Officer Basic and Advanced Courses as well as the Command and General Staff Officer Course.  He holds a BA from VMI and an MS in Environmental Engineering from the University of Florida and is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and licensed Erosion Sediment Control/Storm Water Management Program manager in Virginia.