Scholar in Residence

This spring, the Washington programs welcomed Ryan D. McCarthy, former secretary of the U.S. Army.

Former Secretary of the U.S. Army Ryan

D. McCarthy has joined the Maxwell School’s Washington, D.C., office as a Dean’s Scholar in Residence.

McCarthy, whose year-long appointment began at the start of the spring 2022 semester, brings expertise from senior appointments at the Department of Defense under three U.S. presidents, service on Capitol Hill and from several private sector roles. At Maxwell, he is serving as a strategic advisor, subject matter expert and mentor. Additionally, he will provide lectures, participate in Maxwell’s National Security Management Seminar and lead a graduate-level seminar during the fall 2022 semester.

“Ryan is a highly regarded public servant, a true bipartisan leader who has served presidents from both parties and whose reputation for dependable and selfless service is shared by senior leaders throughout Washington, D.C.,” says Mark Jacobson, assistant dean for Maxwell’s Washington, D.C., programs, headquartered at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “Having hosted Secretary McCarthy in my classrooms on several occasions, I’m eager to have him engage with and mentor our students more regularly on the value of public service, principled leadership, and working with bureaucracy and through bureaucratic challenges.”

During his tenure as secretary of the Army under President Donald Trump, from 2019-2021, McCarthy is credited with spearheading ambitious modernization efforts. Prior to the appointment, he served as the 33rd undersecretary of the Army and as a special assistant to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates during both the Barack Obama and George W. Bush administrations.

His private sector experience includes sequential vice president roles with Lockheed Martin Corporation and as a vice president at HSBC North America. He is a graduate of the Virginia Military Institute and holds an MBA from the University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business.

See pages 28–29 for more recent additions to Maxwell’s Washington programs.