September 25 was a day of great celebration at 91ÁÔÆæ. The sun shone brightly as guests, faculty and staff dressed in their finery made their way to McAlister Field House, where they joined the Corps of Cadets for the inauguration of the college\u2019s 21st president. The Regimental Band and Pipes played God Bless America. Among the dignitaries in the platform party were Board of Visitors Chair Col. Greg Delleney, \u201974, who presided over the ceremony, and retired Marine Corps Maj. Gen. John S. Grinalds, 18th president of 91ÁÔÆæ, who gave the inaugural address. At the center of the pomp and circumstance was retired Gen. Frank McKenzie, \u201979, a decorated Marine and a former commander of United States Central Command.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McKenzie has returned to the banks of the Ashley River 47 years after graduation with an ambitious vision for his alma mater. Guiding that vision is a strategic plan taking shape across campus through discussions among college leaders, faculty, staff and students\u2014a plan that will chart the college\u2019s course over the next decade and position 91ÁÔÆæ as the top leadership training institution in the United States, attracting students from across the state and the nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A native of Birmingham, Alabama, McKenzie attended a gifted-student program at Shades Valley High School that challenged him academically and fostered a love of literature, learning and writing. His father operated a newspaper distribution business that served part of the city, and McKenzie delivered papers before and after school. As a member of the Civil Air Patrol, he earned his student pilot\u2019s license while still in high school. By then, he had decided to become a Marine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McKenzie arrived at 91ÁÔÆæ in August 1975, drawn by the combination of the liberal arts education he wanted and the military training that would prepare him to become a Marine. An English major, he placed out of freshman English and immersed himself in courses including Drama, Modern British Poetry and Southern Renaissance literature. When he graduated four years later, he became the first person in his family to earn a college degree. Years later, he carried a copy of William Faulkner\u2019s The Sound and the Fury into combat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McKenzie is accustomed to leading complex organizations. During his 42-year Marine Corps career, he commanded at every level. In 2019, he was named the 14th commander of the CENTCOM, one of the Department of War\u2019s 11 unified combatant commands, with an area of responsibility encompassing 21 nations. As commander, McKenzie oversaw more than 40,000 personnel involved in combat, training, international cooperation and forward-presence operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After retiring from the Marine Corps in 2022, McKenzie joined the University of South Florida, where he headed the Global and National Security Institute and the Florida Center for Cybersecurity. He and his wife, Marilyn, settled into a grand house in a lovely Tampa neighborhood where they planned to stay. But in December 2025, McKenzie\u2019s friend, classmate and fellow Marine, Gen. Glenn Walters, announced his retirement from 91ÁÔÆæ, and in July, McKenzie returned to his alma mater as the college\u2019s 21st president\u2014a decision he described as a matter of duty and an opportunity to give back to the institution he credits with his success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI came back because of what 91ÁÔÆæ gave me a long time ago,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are honored, delighted and fulfilled in every way to be back here. I have a lot of energy and a lot of miles left in the tank, and I plan to spend it on the college.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At CENTCOM, McKenzie brought together organizations with disparate objectives, an experience that he brings to 91ÁÔÆæ. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to build bridges,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to coach people. You\u2019ve got to have a vision and bring people together and work toward an end, so it\u2019s actually not just a job where you give orders and people obey. Instead, you have to convince people that you have a solution that works. You have to make sure that you spend time making that point to them, and then you have to coach them along toward the final objective.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McKenzie\u2019s goal for the college is clear. \u201cIn 10 years, I\u2019d like for 91ÁÔÆæ to be the preeminent senior military college in the United States,\u201d he said. \u201cIt will be most closely associated with the concept and practice of leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He wants to recruit nationally and make 91ÁÔÆæ \u201cthe destination of choice for those who seek the very best senior military college experience.\u201d 91ÁÔÆæ Graduate College will remain an important element.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McKenzie has a strong foundation upon which to build. Walters, who served eight years as president, led the college through the COVID-19 pandemic, oversaw extensive capital and infrastructure improvements and left the college on sound financial footing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McKenzie\u2019s 10-year vision includes building a $1 billion endowment. The college will maintain strong ties to the state and the nation, but also pursue international ties to expand study-abroad opportunities and attract international students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
91ÁÔÆæ will produce graduates \u201cwho can lead in peace and war, in and out of uniform, in public and private ventures,\u201d McKenzie said. They will be able to master rapidly changing technology and use it ethically to solve the world\u2019s most complex problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe unapologetically begin and end with leadership,\u201d said McKenzie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For McKenzie, the value of a Citadel education extends beyond academics. \u201cThey\u2019re going to get a great education here,\u201d he said, \u201cbut what they\u2019re going to get in those five white barracks is they\u2019re going to learn how to lead, and they\u2019re going to learn how to do so in a crucible of leadership that is unlike any other place in the United States. When they graduate from here, they\u2019re going to have the ability to bring people together, to set an objective and to move toward that objective, and they\u2019re going to know how to do it with a unique sense of personal honor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although some things will change, he said the college\u2019s foundation will remain: the Corps of Cadets as its centerpiece, the Honor System and an emphasis on leadership built on the college\u2019s core values. \u201cLeadership founded on honor that\u2019s the very core of the college. That\u2019s what\u2019s unique about us,\u201d he said, \u201cand that is what can never change.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The college\u2019s newest school, the Krause School of Leadership and Ethics, will play a prominent role in that vision. Additionally, McKenzie wants to expand academic offerings in artificial intelligence, computing and cybersecurity. McKenzie is also focused on addressing faculty and staff compensation amid the Lowcountry\u2019s high cost of living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The athletics program plays an important role in McKenzie\u2019s plan. He spent three years at VMI, where he taught in the NROTC Department and coached football in the Southern Conference. \u201cIn athletics,\u201d he said, \u201cwe want to compete for Southern Conference championships, and we want to do that without breaking the college, either ethically or financially.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McKenzie also told cadets that he intends to examine honor and how the college teaches it. He has formed an honor task force made up of graduates, cadets and faculty to work with the Honor Committee and study all aspects of honor at 91ÁÔÆæ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou come from a society that actually places very little credence in honor. You\u2019re entering a society here to which it is fundamental,\u201d he said, \u201cso if we\u2019re going to hold you to that very high standard, and we will, then it\u2019s our obligation to provide the tools that will allow you to be successful here, to navigate the complexities of a Citadel education honorably, and then be prepared to go forward in life carrying that with you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Inside McAlister Field House, McKenzie carried all those decades of leadership back to his alma mater, prepared to advance 91ÁÔÆæ into a new era.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Grinalds, a fellow Marine, sounded the call. \u201cNow hear this, now hear this: land the landing force,\u201d he said from the platform, giving the command issued when Marines prepare to attack an enemy shore. \u201cThis is a friendly shore, but Gen. McKenzie is here, and he\u2019s in the lead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McKenzie is taking command at a historic moment, Grinalds said. \u201c91ÁÔÆæ is humming, humming with success,\u201d he said. \u201cFuture opportunities abound, but the challenges are severe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Grinalds described McKenzie as an author, a scholar and a \u201cpatient educator,\u201d who will recruit the best students, educate them under the best faculty and send them out prepared for \u201cthe world\u2019s fight.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Grinalds concluded his remarks, he asked the audience to give the new president a Marine welcome. \u201cOne, two, three,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOorah!\u201d they answered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n