March 21, 2017 -Brigadier General Darren Hartford, Commandant at National War College in Ft. McNair, Washington DC joined us for our March 21 meeting. Gen. Hartford previously served as the 437th Air Wing Commander at Joint Base Charleston. Gen. Hartford has over 4,000 flight hours of experience in the Air Force.
Gen. Hartford discussed the challenges that face the United States and that the goal of the National War College (NWC) is prepare America’s young men and women to make the difficult decisions necessary in times of urgency that face our country. Specific challenges such as China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, ISIS and Al Qaeda require American fighters to have the skills necessary to succeed in times of conflict with these adversaries and to work with our allies to defeat terrorism. At present, the US has not faced a more divers and complex array of issues since the end of WW II.
Prior to the establishment of the NWC the individual military services didn’t function as one. In 1946 military leaders envisioned a college that would bring members of the various military branches together in a strategic learning environment. At the time of the formation of the National War College, Lieutenant General Leonard T. Gerow, USA, president of the 1946 board that recommended the formation of the National War College and stated, “The College is concerned with grand strategy and the utilization of the national resources necessary to implement that strategy . . . . Its graduates will exercise a great influence on the formulation of national and foreign policy in both peace and war.” In shaping the NWC program, the college leadership has focused on what it has seen as the four crucial aspects of the mission statement. First is the charge to conduct a senior-level course of study in national security strategy. Every aspect of the NWC program is shaped by the goal of producing graduates who, given a particular national security challenge, can assess that challenge and develop a credible, comprehensive national security strategy to deal with it. Other keys to the NWC mission is to education future leaders for high-level policy, command, and staff responsibilities.
It is celebrating its 70th anniversary and its mission is “to educate future leaders of the Armed Forces, Department of State, and other civilian agencies for high-level policy, command, and staff responsibilities by conducting a senior-level course of study in national security strategy”. According to Gen. Hartford, its focus is on teaching practitioners not scholars and strives to develop leaders who think critically. They embrace a “whole of government” approach, which differs a bit from the Naval War College or Air War College.
Students equally represent the Navy, Army, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard. The college has fellows from 32 different countries. The college focuses on seminars composed of 13 students each with a mix of all of the various services. The NWC has over 11,000 graduates of which 25% are ambassadors and 25% are flag-level military officers.
— Steve Coe, Keyway Committee