Lieutenant General Darryl Williams
Superintendent, United States Military Academy
Darryl A. Williams was born in 1961 in Alexandria, Virginia, and grew up in Fairfax County, Virginia. He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point and was commissioned a second lieutenant in field artillery.
He was selected by President Barack Obama to manage the United States’ response to the West African Ebola virus epidemic in 2016. Later that year, Williams assumed command of Allied Land Command in a ceremony in Turkey. He has also commanded U.S. Army Africa in Vicenza, Italy. Previously, he served as the Deputy Chief of Staff of U.S. Army Europe. He has also served in Korea. He was involved in deployments in support of Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
In July 2018, Williams became the first black officer to command West Point as its Superintendent in its 216-year history.
In the News…
The top Army leaders said 1,000 cadets at the United States Military Academy at West Point must return for graduation, despite the coronavirus risk. Students would need to return to prepare for their duty assignment in any event, the academy superintendent said.
“We can’t telecommute to combat,” Gen. James McConville, the chief of staff of the Army, told Pentagon reporters when asked about the decision, which forces cadets spread out across the U.S. to travel, risking exposure on public transportation, and then land in New York, a coronavirus hot spot.
Cadets have been home since spring break in March, with their return to school delayed because of the outbreak. Only the seniors will return, and the graduation is set for June 13.
Lt. General Darryl Williams, academy superintendent, said the students must return for medical and other required tasks that can only be done at the academy before they can be turned over as new officers to the Army. He said the school will create a “safety bubble” around the cadets and build a staging base where they will arrive. All cadets will be screened and tested for the virus at the staging area and then separated into five groups that will eat and live separately. They will be quarantined for 14 days.
