Robert L. Caslen, Jr.

SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW:

ROBERT L. CASLEN, LIEUTENANT GENERAL (RETIRED), U.S. ARMY

Robert L. Caslen is a United States veteran who served in the U.S. Army for 43 years. His military career culminated in 2018 as the 59th superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point. He also served as the 29th president of the University of South Carolina. As the University of South Carolina’s president, Caslen successfully led the university through its most challenging period, the 2020-21 Pandemic. During the pandemic, the university remained open, profited an additional 50 million dollars, opened a national on-line program, and increased its enrollment applications by 21%. Under his direction as Superintendent, West Point was recognized as the number one public college in the Nation by Forbes Magazine and the number one public college by U.S. News and World Report. Working with the West Point Director of Athletics, Caslen revamped the athletic program and made it self-sustaining. Fulfilling a pledge he made after becoming Superintendent, he led a sweeping reversal of Army’s football program and developed a culture of excellence through winning with character, culminating in Army defeating Navy in 2016 for the first time in 14 years, and winning the Commander-in-Chief’s trophy for the first time in 21 years.

Before becoming the West Point Superintendent, LTG Caslen served as the chief of the Office of Security Cooperation in Iraq, and was the Commandant of the Army’s Command and General Staff College and commanded the Combined Arms Center at FT Leavenworth, KS. Caslen also commanded the 25th Infantry Division during Operation Iraqi Freedom and was Chief of Staff of both the 101st Airborne and the 10th Mountain Divisions, where he also served as Chief of Staff of TF Mountain during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. He also served in combat and overseas deployments in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Honduras, and Operation Uphold Democracy and the United Nations Mission in Haiti.

LTG Caslen holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Long Island University and a Master of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from Kansas State University. He is a Distinguished Graduate of the United States Military Academy, a member of the Kansas State Engineering College Hall of Fame, recognized for a Life Time of Service Award from the American Red Cross, was selected as the Honorary Rock of the Year Award for his leadership in diversity, the 2018 Gerald R. Ford Legends Award for lifetime service as a former football offensive center, the NCAA Theodore Roosevelt Award for a former NCAA student-athlete who is a distinguished citizen of national reputation exemplifying the ideals to which collegiate athletics programs and amateur sports competition are dedicated. LTG Caslen was also recognized with an honorary Doctorate from Long Island University and has co-authored the book, The Character Edge Leading and Winning with Integrity. He is married to the former Michele Pastin, from Highland Falls, N.Y. for 45 years and has 3 adult sons and 5 grandchildren.

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