Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Four Star General Stanley McChrystal to Speak at Widener

(Tuesday, March 06, 2012) Retired four-star General Stanley McChrystal, the former commander of U.S. and international forces in Afghanistan, will speak at Widener University at 3:15 p.m. Monday, March 26 in the University Center Webb Room. The event is free and open to the public, seating is limited. Reserve seats by calling 610-499-4112 or by e-mailing cjcaporale@widener.edu.
 
McChrystal’s talk at Widener will be in advance of his evening appearance as part of the Philadelphia Speakers Series presented by Widener at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia. Tickets for the evening lecture are sold out.

A one-of-a-kind commander with a remarkable record of achievement, McChrystal is widely praised for creating a revolution in warfare that fused intelligence and operations. In addition to commanding U.S. and international forces in Afghanistan, he led the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), which oversees the military’s most sensitive counter-terrorism units. McChrystal’s leadership of JSOC is credited with the December 2003 capture of Saddam Hussein and the June 2006 location and killing of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq.

McChrystal graduated from West Point in 1976 and began training at the Special Forces School at Fort Bragg, N.C., two years later. He was commissioned as an infantry officer, and spent much of his career commanding special operations and airborne infantry units. During the Persian Gulf War, McChrystal served in a Joint Special Operations Task Force and later commanded the 75th Ranger Regiment. 

In 2002, he was appointed chief of staff of military operations in Afghanistan. From 2003 to 2008, McChrystal commanded JSOC and was responsible for leading the nation’s deployed military counter-terrorism efforts around the globe. He assumed command of all International Forces in Afghanistan in June 2009. President Obama’s order for an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan was based on McChrystal’s assessment of the war there. McChrystal retired from the military in August 2010. He now serves on the board of directors for JetBlue Airways and the Yellow Ribbon Fund.

Now in its eighth sold-out season, the Philadelphia Speakers Series offers annual subscribers the opportunity to spend an evening with Pulitzer and Nobel Peace Prize winners, world leaders, statesmen, distinguished journalists, authors and other celebrated personalities. For information about the Philadelphia Speakers Series and the lineup of speakers for the 2011-12 season, visit www.philadelphiaspeakersseries.org.

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