Now that I Corps is home from its first official combat deployment since the Korean War, what’s next?

New faces and a return to the corps’ traditional mission of a focus on the Pacific region, corps commander Lt. Gen. Charles Jacoby said Thursday.

The corps bulked up its numbers and deployed to Iraq with almost 1,000 soldiers. The staffing level will drop to about 800 people. And even though its focus will look west – to countries like Korea and Japan – it will remain available to deploy worldwide.

“We’ll take a quick rest and get back to work,” Jacoby said.

Much of its leadership will soon depart. Jacoby has been nominated for a job on the Joint Staff in Washington, D.C., and is awaiting Senate confirmation. He will relinquish command in a ceremony tentatively scheduled for late April.

Maj. Gen. J.D. Johnson will command the corps until Defense Secretary Robert Gates names Jacoby’s replacement, and that person gets the Senate’s approval.

“This was a significant event in bringing the corps back to life – training it, deploying it, accomplishing the mission and now resetting it and having it available for global deployment,” Jacoby said. “It’s a powerful capability, and one we’re proud to be a part of.”