Severing Military's Ties With Harvard Is a Mistake (opinion)

"Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced this month that the Department of Defense will no longer send active-duty military for graduate-level professional military education at Harvard University. In a video announcing the decision on social media, he claimed that officers returned from Harvard with " heads full of globalist and radical ideologies." He added, "We train warriors. Not wokesters." Before I begin, I will lay my cards on the table."

"Politics aside, severing ties between the military and Harvard is a mistake. While at HKS, I had the opportunity to participate in most student organizations, meet with both student and administrator leadership, and drive many of the social and policy discussions (formal and informal) across the school. In each of these settings, military members were active participants: injecting keen insight, stimulating robust dialogue or voicing perspectives that no one else in the classroom had considered."

"What troubles me most about Hegseth's announcement is that he offered neither data, evidence nor metrics to support the claim that Harvard-educated officers graduate less capable. While invoking General Washington's assumption of command of the Continental Army in Harvard Square or the number of Harvard-trained Medal of Honor recipients, Hegseth played to emotional appeal rather than demonstrable metrics or data that support his action. But gambling with our nation's top officers' professional education from a well-established world-class institution is a high-risk, low-r"

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced that the Department of Defense will no longer send active-duty military for graduate-level professional military education at Harvard Kennedy School, alleging officers return "with heads full of globalist and radical ideologies." He stated, "We train warriors. Not wokesters." A medically retired Air Force major with leadership experience at HKS was elected executive vice president of the student government. Military students actively participated in classroom discussion and school leadership, providing unique perspectives. The announcement presented no supporting data, metrics, or evidence that Harvard-educated officers graduate less capable. Removing this professional education relationship is characterized as a high-risk decision lacking demonstrable justification.

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