In a major move to restore a culture of accountability and warfighting excellence, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth today directed the comprehensive overhaul of the Department's Professional Military Education (PME) system.
Following a rigorous review by the Senior Service College Task Force, the Secretary directed immediate, systemic reforms across all Senior Service Colleges and Intermediate Level Education (ILE) institutions. The directive reverses decades of academic drift, eliminating ideological distractions in favor of joint warfighting mastery, decision-forcing rigor, and competitive wargaming. Under these new guidelines, the Department will evaluate military schools by a singular, uncompromising standard: "Does this program forge leaders who will win America's wars?"
The Department's comprehensive implementation plan lays out immediate directives to restructure how future military commanders are trained and evaluated:
Warfighters in the Classroom: Establishes elite "Warfighter Chair" positions at all senior colleges, filled by high-performing O-5 and O-6 commanders fresh from operational deployments to inject real-time combat lessons.
Mandatory Wargaming and Exams: Replaces subjective seminar grading with rigorous, standardized end-of-course wargames and comprehensive exams to test tactical and strategic mastery.
Faculty Accountability: Eliminates lifetime tenure and emeritus status for newly hired civilian faculty, shifting instead to three-year, performance-based contracts evaluated on teaching effectiveness and national security research.
Rigorous Governance Oversight: Mandates the Under Secretary of War for Personnel and Readiness to directly track all tasked requirements to guarantee rapid execution.
Click here to read the full memorandum.
