General J. H. Binford Peay III '62 Leader-in-Residence
Named in honor of VMI's 14th Superintendent General J. H Binford Peay III '62, the VMI Leader-in-Residence (LIR) program is an important part of the Center's efforts to educate, engage, and inspire cadets, faculty, and staff to develop as leaders.
The Leader-in-Residence program brings to post people of stature within their fields whose distinguished careers exemplify the citizen-soldier model. Their residency amounts to a two-week visit over the course of the academic year. They interact primarily with cadets in various formal and informal settings, including the classroom, in barracks, and during athletic activities such as club sports. This individual gives the keynote address at the Superintendent's Leadership Dinner and also meets with the faculty and staff.
The “residency” aspect of the program allows cadets and faculty to explore the full range of leadership issues the leader has faced during their career. Both the LIR and members of the VMI community benefit from a mutual exchange of ideas to test their understanding of leadership concepts, explore how these concepts have been used in practice, and investigate the broad range of challenges leaders face today.
2023-24 Leader-in-Residence: Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Chris Burns
36-year Army Veteran - Special Forces Officer - Corporate Coach - Experienced leader in the nonprofit and corporate sectors
Brig. Gen. Chris Burns, U.S. Army, Retired, commissioned in 1987 as a distinguished graduate of the Reserve Officer Training Corps program at the University of Connecticut. Upon graduation, he transferred to the Rhode Island Army National Guard and began training to become a United States Army Special Forces Officer. He has successfully served in numerous assignments within special operations throughout his30-year career, including working at operational detachment, company, battalion, and brigade level, as well as numerous theater special operations commands, Joint Special Operations Task Force, U.S. Special Operations Command, and the Joint Staff. Brig. Gen.Burns has previously deployed in staff and command positions supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Brig. Gen. Burns most recently served as the Assistant Commanding General, U.S. Special Operations Command Central, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, from August 2014 to July 2016. He previously served as the Assistant to Vice Commander,U.S. Special Operations Command from January 2014 to August 2014. Brig. Gen. Burns completed 36 years of service culminating as the Commander, Special Operations Command North, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado.
As the IWC’s Senior Advisor, Burns brings over 34 years of experience as a trusted advisor and confidant to executives, management teams, organizational partners, and relevant staff. Burns delivers inspirational leadership by leveraging expertise developed in a stellar military career as an Army Commanding General, Green Beret, and strategic partner while enabling the development of innovative solutions by collaborating with key stakeholders in achieving aggressive objectives. Key competencies include virtual/in-person training, project management/analysis, strategic planning/growth,team/stakeholder collaboration, talent selection/development,communication/organizational influence, team leadership, coaching/mentoring, program development, as well as delivery and execution.
Burns’ educational background includes a master’s degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College in 2009, a master’s degree in business administration from Western Connecticut University in 2006, and a bachelor’s degree in economics/political from the University of Connecticut in 1987. Burns is also a member of the National Guard Association of the United States, Special Forces Association, Association of United States Army, and Army National Guard Bureau.
Previous Leaders-in-Residence
Ms. Tracy Walder, 2022-23
Former CIA officer and FBI special agent
Ms. Tracy Walder, 2022-23
Ms. Tracy Walder worked as Staff Operations Officer (SOO) at the Central Intelligence Agency's Counterterrorism Center Weapons of Mass Destruction Group. During her time at the CIA, Ms. Walder traveled to Afghanistan, Jordan, Uzbekistan, Algeria, Morocco, Denmark, Sweden, Italy, and England.
She received many awards for her service from both the CIA and from foreign intelligence offices as well. Among her awards were four Exceptional Performance Awards from the Director of the CIA, two Special Activity Awards, a Meritorious Unit Citation Award, a DCI Counterterrorism Center Medal, and two Operation Enduring Freedom Targeting Awards.
After the CIA, Ms. Walder became a Special Agent at the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office specializing in Chinese counterintelligence operations and has also created courses on national security & foreign policy for young women. She now works as an adjunct professor of Criminal Justice and Domestic Terrorism at Texas Christian University and Global Terrorism at Ursuline Academy.
Lieutenant General (Ret.) Gwen Bingham, U. S. Army, 2021-22
U. S. Army retired 3-star General, 38-year career
Lieutenant General (Ret.) Gwen Bingham, U. S. Army, 2021-22
Lieutenant General (three-stars) Bingham retired in September 2019 from the United States Army following a 38-year career in the military.
Some of her accomplishments include:
Army Assistant Chief of Staff, Installation Management
First female Garrison Commander at Fort Lee
First female to serve as Quartermaster General
Army ROTC Distinguished Military Graduate, University of Alabama Aug ’81, Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce and Business Administration
Two Master’s Degrees: Administration from Central Michigan University, National Security Strategy and Resources from the National Defense University
2019 Joint Women’s Leadership in Excellence Meritorious Service Award
Lieutenant General Gwen Bingham is a U. S. Army retired 3-star General and a native of Troy, Alabama. She graduated from Army ROTC as a Distinguished Military Graduate from the University of Alabama in August 1981 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce and Business Administration. She commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Quartermaster Corps. Bingham has a Master’s degree in Administration from Central Michigan University and a Master’s degree in National Security Strategy and Resources from the National Defense University.
Bingham deployed to Kuwait and Afghanistan in April 2010 in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. She has been a trailblazer serving as the first woman to hold numerous positions as a General Officer. They include: The Army’s 51st Quartermaster General and Commandant of the US Army Quartermaster School; Commanding General, White Sands Missile Range; and Commanding General, Tank-automotive and Armaments Life Cycle Management Command. On 30 June 2016, she was confirmed by the Senate for promotion to Lieutenant General and assignment in the Pentagon as the Army Assistant Chief of Staff for Installation Management.
Bingham’s professional affiliations include: Council on Foreign Relations, member; National Association of Corporate Directors, Governance Fellows; Blue Star Families Board of Directors (Vice-Chair); Owens and Minor, Incorporated Board of Directors; Military Child Education Coalition, Life Member; Association of the United States Army, Life Member; ROCKS, Incorporated, Life Member; and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, Life Member.
Bingham is the recipient of the 2019 White House Correspondents “Be Fearless” Award; the 2019 Joint Women’s Leadership in Excellence Meritorious Service Award; the 2018 Ellis Island Medal of Honor; the 2018 Women in Defense Service to the Flag award and the 2014 Rock of the Year award. She and her husband, Dr. Patrick J. Bingham, have two adult children: Dr. Tava M. Bingham and Mr. Phillip J. Bingham. She and her husband reside in Leander, Texas.
Gen. Richard "Butch" Neal, USMC (Ret.), 2020-21
Decorated veteran, author, and corporate leader
Gen. Richard "Butch" Neal, USMC (Ret.), 2020-21
Following graduation from Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, General Neal was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Marine Corps. For the next thirty-five years, Neal commanded at every level within the Marine Corps; battery, battalion, brigade, and as the Second Marine Division Commander.
He served two tours in the Republic of Vietnam and was twice decorated with the United States’ third-highest award for gallantry, the Silver Star Medal. During Operation Desert Storm, Neal served as the Deputy Director of Operations for General Schwarzkopf and was also responsible for briefing the international press on the war. Neal was promoted to four stars and assigned as the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps before his retirement in 1998.
Subsequent to his retirement he has been the President of three companies dealing with the licensing of Intellectual Property. Neal was the Senior Mentor for the United States Marine Corps for five years and was a Senior Fellow for the National Defense University. Additionally, Neal was the Chairman of the Board for the Military Officers Association of America and is presently on the Board of Directors for Humanetics Corporation, for Steel Partners Holding, LP, and is on the Board of Trustees for Norwich University.
Neal holds a B.S. in History and Education from Northeastern University, an M.Ed. from Tulane University, and is a graduate of The National War College. Neal recently published a memoir “What Now, Lieutenant?” that is on the Commandant of the Marine Corps Professional Reading list. He and his wife Kathy have three children and eight Grandchildren and have lived on Capitol Hill since his retirement from the Marine Corps.