Carnegie Mellon University
September 24, 2012

Media Advisory: Carnegie Mellon Hosts Four-Star General Stanley McChrystal For Inaugural Smith Family Lecture in the Applied Humanities

Contact: Shilo Rea / 412-268-6094 / shilo@cmu.edu

McChrystalEvent: Few people have as much insight on the current state of military and global affairs as General Stanley McChrystal, the former commander of U.S. and international forces in Afghanistan.

General McChrystal will visit Carnegie Mellon University to give the inaugural Bradford and Diane Smith Family Lecture in the Applied Humanities. McChrystal will discuss the "Security Challenges Facing America," including the new concerns facing America in a globalized world, the proliferation of non-state actors and the advance of information technology and instantaneous communication. He will share a thorough assessment of U.S. security and what the future will hold.

"A top military leader, a diplomat and scholar, General McChrystal, who now teaches at Yale University, will give us his perspective on the many international challenges facing the U.S.," said Kiron Skinner, associate professor of social and decision sciences within the Dietrich College, director of the university's Center for International Relations and Politics (CIRP) and the university's adviser on national security policy. "There's no better thought leader to speak with us about what is happening in the world."

A four-star general, McChrystal is known for developing and implementing the counter-insurgency strategy in Afghanistan and for creating a comprehensive counter-terror organization that revolutionized the way military agencies interact and operate.

In 2002, McChrystal was appointed chief of staff of military operations in Afghanistan. Two years later, he was selected to deliver the nationally televised Pentagon briefings about military operations in Iraq. From 2003-2008, he commanded the Joint Special Operations Command and was responsible for leading the nation's deployed military counter-terrorism efforts around the globe. McChrystal assumed command of all international forces in Afghanistan in June 2009 and then retired from the military in 2010.

The Bradford and Diane Smith Family Lecture in the Applied Humanities was established to acknowledge Bradford and Diane Smith's contributions to Carnegie Mellon. Bradford, a 1969 graduate of the College of Engineering, and Diane, a 1971 graduate of the Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences, have provided financial support to the Humanities Scholars Program, a rigorous, four-year interdisciplinary program designed to create a vibrant community of scholars.

The event is sponsored by CMU's Center for International Relations and Politics, the Humanities Scholars Program, the Office of the Vice Provost for Education, the Department of Modern Languages and the School of Computer Science.

When: 1 p.m., Friday, Oct. 5 
Where: McConomy Auditorium, Carnegie Mellon's University Center
Registration: Tickets are required to attend. To obtain a ticket, go to http://www.cmu.edu/ceilidh.
Media: To attend this event, you must pre-register with Shilo Rea at 412-268-6094 or shilo@cmu.edu.

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Pictured above is General Stanley McChrystal, the former commander of U.S. and international forces in Afghanistan.