Carved from Granite: West Point since 1902

Ch2: "A Lion's Mouth"

31 ONE MIGHT think that governance at West Point would be simple and straightforward. After all, West Point, like every other army base, has a commanding general—in this case, a “superintendent”—with legal authority over the soldiers and civilians who live and work there. There are talented staff officers and subordinate commanders to carry out the policies of the superintendent . The workforce, military and civilian, embraces the professional ethos of selfless service and helps the commander accomplish missions big and small. The reality, however, is that governance at West Point has never been simple or straightforward. The complexities stem primarily from the duality implied by the institution’s name. The “United States Military Academy” is both a military organization and an academic institution, and the result is a command with built-in tensions. On the one hand, cadets live in an environment that steeps them in the traditional military virtues of loyalty, obedience, and unity of purpose. On the other, they are encouraged to embrace the academic virtues of intellectual freedom, scholarly skepticism, and diversity of opinion. During the nineteenth century, the Academic Board arbitrated the competing interests of the institution’s academic and military identities. Its members , consisting primarily of the superintendent and the professors from each discipline, ruled on all aspect of the curriculum—academic schedule, course content, examination and grading procedures, and graduation requirements. Given the small size of the superintendent’s staff, the Board’s authority eventually expanded to encompass policy issues of a general nature. With one vote each, no individual member could dominate, but collectively the will of the Chapter Two “A Lion’s Mouth” Governance at West Point 32 CHAPTER TWO Academic Board was absolute. The Board’s influence constituted a powerful counterweight to the prerogatives and initiatives of the superintendent; consequently , many needed reforms or foolish initiatives (depending on one’s point of view) were blocked by the inertial forces of the Board. The corporate nature of the body ensured that changes, particularly those relating to the curriculum, were incremental and reflective of the will of the majority. During the twentieth century, the Academic Board continued to dominate governance until the end of the Second World War. At that point, the balance of power shifted gradually to produce rough parity between the superintendent and the other members of the Academic Board. Thirty years later, following a major cheating incident and searching scrutiny of all aspects of West Point, the locus of power shifted decisively to the superintendent. The command structure became increasingly more characteristic of a standard army installation than a college campus; consequently, the institution operated more nimbly and responsively to the priorities of the superintendent. There were many bene fits of the new arrangement, but also pitfalls. Enlightened superintendents made far-reaching, positive changes to strengthen the Academy as a leader development institution. Less enlightened superintendents sometimes had the opposite effect, forcing into place shortsighted policies inconsistent with the Academy’s mission. I. From the Centennial through the First World War As Albert Mills prepared to assume command of West Point in September 1898, he could only marvel at the chain of events that had brought him there. After graduating from the Academy in 1879, he joined the 1st Cavalry Regiment on the western frontier and, over the next decade, took part in Indian pacification missions and campaigns against the Crow and Sioux nations. Interrupting the field duty were jobs as a professor of military science and tactics at South Carolina Military Academy in Charleston and as an instructor of strategy, cavalry, and tactics at the Infantry and Cavalry School at Fort Leavenworth , Kansas. Mills was at Fort Leavenworth when the United States declared war on Spain in April 1898. Since the 1st Cavalry Regiment had been alerted for deployment , Mills packed his bags and awaited his orders. Instead of joining his fellow troopers, however, he was assigned to Maj. Gen. Joseph Wheeler’s cavalry division, one of the principal fighting units being organized for the expedition to Cuba.1 Mills helped organize the regiments of the Wheeler’s second brigade: his own 1st US Cavalry, the all-black 10th US Cavalry, and the 1st US “A LION’S MOUTH” 33 Volunteer Cavalry—the famed “Rough Riders.” Impressed by Mills’s work, Wheeler appointed him as the brigade adjutant.2 The expeditionary force landed at Daiquirí, Cuba, on 22 June. Just two...