On a blue five-sided polygon tapered and pointed at top, within a 1/8 inch (.32 cm) khaki border, a narrow border garnished on the upper and two lower points by a dogwood blossom all in white, overall and upon a wreath of twists alternating white and red, "Virtus the genius of the Commonwealth dressed as an Amazon, resting on a spear with one hand and holding a sword in the other; and treading on Tyranny, represented by a man prostrate, a crown falling from his head, a broken chain in his left hand and a scourge in his right" in khaki, 3 5/16 inches (8.41 cm) in height and 2 5/8 (6.67 cm) in width overall. 

The colors khaki and blue are from the uniform of George Washington, military general, Founding Father of the United States, and life-long Virginian. The flowering dogwood is both the official Virginia state flower and tree. The crest is from the state seal adopted on July 5, 1776. The red and white twists on a blue background make up our national colors. 

The shoulder sleeve insignia was originally approved for Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, Virginia National Guard on 23 November 1956.  It was redesignated with description amended for Headquarters, State Area Command, Virginia Army National Guard on 30 December 1983.  The insignia was redesignated for the Virginia Army National Guard Element, Joint Force Headquarters and amended to update the description effective 1 October 2003.  The Shoulder Sleeve Insignia was revised to remove colors and design elements referring to the Confederacy effective 21 September 2021 (TIOH Dwg. No. A-1-246)