3 / 8
SUMMER
2015
westpointforusall.org
3
For Us All Campaign Cabinet
Campaign Co-Chairs
Mr. Jodie Glore ’
69
,
Retired President and Chief Operating Officer,
Rockwell Automation
Mr. Frederic Malek ’
59
,
Founder and Co-Chairman, Thayer Lodging Group
Honorary Campaign Cabinet Members
Mr. Lee Anderson ’61,
Chairman, API Group, Inc.
BG(R) Peter Dawkins ’59,
Founder and Senior Partner,
Flintlock Capital Asset Management, LL C
Mr. Thomas Dyer ’67,
Owner/President, Dyer Enterprises
Ms. Frances Hesselbein,
Chairman and Founding President,
Frances Hesselbein Leadership Institute; 2009 West Point Class of 1951
Chair for the Study of Leadership
Mr. James Kimsey ’62,
Founding Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Emeritus,
America OnLine, Inc.
Mr. WilliamMounger ’48,
Owner/President, Delta Royalty Company, Inc.
Mrs. Eric Shinseki,
Board Member, Military Child Education Coalition;
Member of Board of Managers of The Army Emergency Relief
Campaign Cabinet Members
Mr. Joseph Anderson ’65,
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Tag Holdings LLC
LTG(R) Daniel Christman ’65,
Senior Counselor, United States Chamber of Commerce;
Former Superintendent, USMA
Mr. Joseph DePinto ’86,
President and Chief Executive Officer, 7-Eleven, Inc.
Mr. William Foley II ’67,
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,
Fidelity National Financial
Mr. George Gilmore ’71,
Retired President and Chief Executive Officer,
Exelon Enterprises
Mr. Michael Grebe ’62,
President and Chief Executive Officer, Lynde and Harry
Bradley Foundation
LTG (R) Franklin Hagenbeck ’71,
Former Superintendent, USMA
Mr. Ed Harshfield (former ’62),
Senior Advisor, Acquiline Capital Corporation
Mr. Ken Hicks ’74,
President and Chief Executive Officer, Foot Locker, Inc.
LTG(R) Larry Jordan ’68,
WPAOG
Chairman; Retired Senior Vice President,
Burdeshaw Associates, LTD
LTG(R) William Lennox ’71,
Former Senior Vice President, Goodrich Corporation;
Former Superintendent, USMA
Mr. Dana Mead ’57,
Chairman Emeritus, Massachusetts Institute of Technology;
Retired Chairman and CEO, Tenneco
Mr. WilliamMurdy ’64,
Chairman and Former Chief Executive Officer, Comfort Systems
USA, Inc.; Chairman, Thayer Leader Development Group
Mr. Ronald Naples ’67,
Chief Accountability Officer for the State of Pennsylvania;
Retired Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Quaker Chemical Corporation
Honorable R. James Nicholson ’61,
Former Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Mr. Anthony Noto ’91,
CFO, Twitter; former CFO, National Football League
Former Campaign Cabinet Members
GEN(R) Alexander Haig Jr. ’47,
59th United States Secretary of State
Mr. Robert McDonald ’75,
Retired Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer,
Procter & Gamble Company
TheModernWar Institute
Superintendent LTG Robert L. Caslen, Jr. recently announced a new
priority for the Academy within the
For Us All Campaign:
the
ModernWar
Inst itute (MWI).
Housed within the Department of Mi l itary
Instruction, this Institute will conduct tactical, operational, and strategic
research that moves the boundaries of current military and academic
knowledge and serves as a resource for the Academy, Army, and nation.
The MWI was developed in response to a need from within
the Academy for a repository of resources and trainings
focused on the study of modern war. While West Point has
always trained and educated its cadets in modern day warfare,
technologies, and strategy, it has no central program or hub
that coordinates these lessons and disseminates them across
the curriculum.
“West Point’s academic departments are constantly
producing cutting-edge research that not only deepens cadets’
and faculty’s academic and professional knowledge but aids
the Army and military in its operations,” says Major Mike
Jackson, Defense & Strategic Studies Program faculty
member. “However, no mechanism currently exists to
coordinate this research and integrate it into the military
classes and programs.”
TheMWI will address this gap and provide a comprehensive
program that extends beyond the gates of West Point.
Whether a soldier, scholar, or student, the MWI will serve as
the source for the study of modern war and warfare. TheWest
Point Association of Graduates is seeking $19.7 million to
endow the MWI and its Margin of Excellence programs,
which include: research; cadet enrichment; events; and
communications and outreach.
Research is central to the MWI’s mission. Multiple areas
of programming will both contribute and disseminateMWI’s
research, which will be conducted by West Point cadets,
faculty, and staff. “Under the MWI,” explains Colonel Liam
Collins, Director of the Modern War Institute, “cadets will
have the opportunity to pursue multi-year research projects
in specialized topic areas, such as megacities, subterranean
warfare, and human performance optimization. In addition,
the MWI will help incorporate findings into the broader
curriculum and advance research already conducted by the
Army through additional study.”
All of theMWI’s researchwill be collected and disseminated
through the “War Room,” a physical and online library that
will archive cadet and faculty research related to modern
warfare and serve as a resource for the Academy as well as
recently commissioned officers preparing for deployment.
“The War Room will provide a one-stop source for research
and related information organized thematically and
regionally,” says Major Jackson, “and ensure the MWI’s
positioning as a national resource.”
Additionally, the MWI will offer cadets out-of-classroom
experiences through which they will be able to travel to
regions of recent conflict, conduct field research, and work
with organizations or entities dealing firsthand in current or
recent conflicts. “It’s imperative for cadets to gain firsthand
experience with the regions, people, and entities directly
related to modern war so that they can develop a level of
understanding that extends beyond the classroom as well as
form relationships with organizations and people that they
may soon work with as commissioned officers,” explains
Major John Spencer, Department of Military Instruction
faculty member.
For instance, theMWI will develop Battlefield Assessments
in which a small group of cadets conduct field research on
recent conf licts around the world. Its first Battlefield
Assessment will take place this summer in Bosnia, where
cadets will study the Bosnian conflict with a focus on urban
operations during the Siege of Sarajevo. Participating cadets
will develop individualized research projects, which will
contribute to theMWI’s overall research program. With private
funding, theMWI looks to increase the number of Battlefield
Assessments, to include the Philippines, Israel, Sri Lanka, and
eventually locations such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and
Somalia. It also seeks to coordinate cadet internships at places
like the Chief of Staff of the Army’s Strategic Studies Group,
a Combatant Command Headquarters, and the Pentagon.
TheMWI will also expandWest Point’s military program’s
access to distinguished visitors through lectures, symposia,
and conferences. These events, which will be open to cadets
and faculty in a variety of academic departments, will include
senior military, policy, and academic leaders, all of whom can
contribute to the study of current warfare or military
problems. For instance, the MWI seeks to develop a Military
Academies Conference, following the annual Sandhurst
Competition that would promote professional dialogue on
global topics concerning war and warfare among a multi-
national and diverse group of military professionals.
These events and out-of-classroom experiences are just a
few examples of the types of opportunities and resources that
the MWI seeks to establish and sustain. Through such
programming, the MWI aims to become the informational
hub for the study of modern warfare for West Point, the Army,
and the nation. It will enhance the quality of cadet military
education and training and provide cadets the opportunity to
pursue the study of modern war in a way that has never been
possible before.