When I was a graduate student studying public policy at Brown, I was an anomaly: an active-duty Coast Guard officer and an Army Iraq combat veteran surrounded by some of the country's brightest civilian intellectuals. I brought my military experience into the classroom — the weight of combat decisions, the impact we made as peacekeepers and the human cost of policies made in Washington. My classmates challenged my assumptions in ways military training never had, and I gave my fellow students a view into the armed services. We were all better because of the rigorous debates we had over military policy, including operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
On Feb. 27, The Herald reported on Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s new policy that eliminates funding for officers enrolled in graduate programs at elite universities, including Brown. He accused these institutions of being “breeding grounds of toxic indoctrination.” While this policy is currently limited to service members assigned to fully-funded graduate education, this decision could later be expanded to include other educational funding for ROTC cadets, service members and veterans. This new policy stands in the way of the mutually beneficial relationship between service members and students. Hegseth’s restrictions on active-duty members' ability to attend Brown and other top-tier universities will not strengthen the military but weaken it, deepening a dangerous gap between our military and the society it serves.
Brown and other elite institutions must actively work to preserve these programs because their benefits extend to the University and the military alike. The Watson School’s Military Fellows Program — established in 2019 — embeds experienced military practitioners directly into the scholarly community. The fellows audit graduate courses, engage in security seminars and participate in research — ensuring civilian students study policies like regime change, peacekeeping, humanitarian aid and disaster relief alongside those who have been on the frontlines implementing them, creating a two-way exchange between theory and lived reality. Since the end of the draft in 1973, the military has been increasingly separated from the population it serves. Many veterans feel misunderstood by their civilian counterparts. At the same time, only about 6% of the population has worn a uniform, down from 18% in 1980. Fewer veterans means that civilians are increasingly disconnected from servicemembers and the realities of service.
Our national security relies on the intellectual rigor that results from deep study and debate — not insulation. Closing doors out of fear of differing views underestimates the resilience and intelligence of our service members. Brown’s students could be future political leaders of the armed forces, and they would benefit from learning from service members who have implemented policies made by civilians in Washington. Isolating service members by banning them from these influential academic institutions risks a future where civilian leaders make life-and-death decisions without understanding the military. We risk creating a “warrior class” cut off culturally and intellectually from the citizenry they are sworn to protect, eroding the mutual understanding that healthy civil-military relations require.
Secretary Hegseth claims that the Ivy League and other elite institutions expose students to “woke indoctrination.” However, Brown does not indoctrinate — it challenges students to grapple with complex viewpoints. Brown’s Open Curriculum encourages students to seek out diverse knowledge and its mission statement exhorts Brunonians “to serve the community, the nation, and the world” through a “spirit of free inquiry.” This academic environment fosters the critical thinking and adaptability needed for modern, complex warfare. Burning these bridges doesn’t protect the military; it deprives it of a vital strategic advantage. This intellectual friction is essential for victory in the 21st century. In many ways, a Brown education is like special forces training for the scholar-warrior.
Modern warfare is complex, spanning from multi-spectrum conflict in the gray zone — including cyber operations, misinformation and unconventional tactics — to high-intensity combat operations. A soldier who has learned how to think is better-equipped than one who has only learned what to think. History shows that militaries built on rigid ideological conformity struggle against adversaries that promote initiative and critical thinking. We see how a lack of intellectual prowess led to failures in the Red Army’s conflict against Finland and Germany, and in present-day Russia’s campaign in Ukraine. The U.S. military has long valued initiative at every level. Commanders state their intent, and subordinates are trusted to determine how to achieve it — a philosophy that has been forged and tested on the battlefield and stands in sharp contrast to the Russian military, where independent thinking has historically been a liability rather than an asset. The greatest danger of Secretary Hegseth’s policy is that it pushes us toward the restrictive educational models that we criticize other nations for.
In the 21st century, the U.S. military cannot succeed with soldiers who only follow orders, nor with civilians who do not understand the military. Instead, we need institutions of higher education — like Brown — to bridge the gap between these two groups. Secretary Hegseth's policy takes us in the wrong direction. Brown and similar elite institutions are not threats to military readiness — they are force multipliers. Every door closed between our universities and the armed forces is a strategic gift to our adversaries. We cannot afford that. Open the doors.
Jeremy M. McKenzie, MPP ’16, is an Army veteran who later retired as a Coast Guard officer. He served for over 22 years as an officer and aviator, including a peacekeeping tour in Bosnia and two combat tours in Iraq. He can be reached at jeremy_mckenzie@alumni.brown.edu. Please send responses to this op-ed to letters@browndailyherald.com and other opinions to opinions@browndailyherald.com.
