The CGSC Foundation’s Simons Center hosted an Arter-Rowland National Security Forum luncheon event on Sept. 4, 2024, at the at the Carriage Club in Kansas City. The event featured a presentation on Fort Leavenworth and the Combined Arms Center by Lt. Gen. Milford H. Beagle, Jr., commanding general of the Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth, commandant of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and the deputy commanding general for Combined Arms – U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command.

Simons Center Director Bob Ulin welcomed the ARNSF members and their guests. After lunch, he introduced Lt. Gen. Beagle.

(Top photo and above) Lt. Gen. Milford H. Beagle, Jr., commanding general of the Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth, commandant of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and the deputy commanding general for Combined Arms – U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, provides a presentation about the roles and missions of Fort Leavenworth and the Combined Arms Center during the Arter-Rowland National Security Forum luncheon event on Sept. 4, 2024, at the Carriage Club in Kansas City.

Beagle began his presentation at the strategic level, outlining what he believes is the biggest threat to our national security – recruiting – and how the military, specifically the Army, struggles to find qualified recruits with a desire to serve. He also spoke briefly about his perspective that the “how” is more important in national security than “why” and that the oath that Soldiers take is extremely important. Finally, he addressed various issues in national security saying that “if you’ve heard ONE national security perspective, then you’ve heard ONE national security perspective.” For a visual of national security challenges Beagle showed an unclassified slide from Army intelligence in the Pentagon that summarized today’s global environment. The slide depicted a global map with the U.S. combatant commands areas of responsibility overlayed and the challenges each combatant command faces in their areas.

After this bigger picture breakdown, Beagle shifted to Fort Leavenworth and its role in helping solve the problems in national security. He described Fort Leavenworth as the “Army’s engine room” or as many have called it over the years, the “intellectual center for the Army” where war fighting expertise is collected and the Army’s foundational language and concepts are developed, and where leader schools and other courses, including Army civilian education, are designed and conducted. Beagle said all of these capabilities prepare Army leaders for the uncertain environment they face around the world. The Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth educates more than 200,000 students each year around the country, with a little more than 9,000 per year at Fort Leavenworth alone.

Lastly, Beagle spoke about his command responsibility to provided for the quality of life and community for his Soldiers and their families at Fort Leavenworth. He spoke about his efforts to communicate and collaborate with the community and keep an open dialogue with them about what the plans and initiatives are to help keep Fort Leavenworth the “best hometown in the Army.” He specifically mentioned the plans for a new child development center and a new off post museum in the near future. Beagle also spoke about longer term plans, describing his current actions as “planting seeds for the harvest” in the future.

After the presentation and a question and answer period, Ulin presented Beagle with a CGSC Foundation/Simons Center coffee mug and coin in appreciation for his time with the Forum. After the formal program Beagle remained a few extra minutes to meet and shake hands with many of the Forum members.

For more photos see the CGSC Foundation Flickr album

Lieutenant General Milford H. Beagle, Jr. was commissioned as an Infantry Officer upon graduation from South Carolina State University in 1990 as a distinguished military graduate.

Beagle has served in multiple leadership capacities from the platoon to division level. He has served in combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan in positions ranging from operations officer in tactical combat units to advisor as part of NATO missions. His career assignments have spanned the globe from Hawaii to the Republic of South Korea.

Prior to Fort Leavenworth, Beagle’s most recent assignments include service as the deputy commanding general for support of the 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) at Fort Drum, New York, where he was forward deployed in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, Iraq. He then served as the 51st commanding general of the United States Army Training Center and Fort Jackson, South Carolina. He next served as the commanding general, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) and Fort Drum, New York.

Beagle holds master’s degrees from Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, and the United States Army School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS), Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He and his wife Pam have two children and two grandchildren.

The Arter-Rowland National Security Forum (ARNSF) is led by the CGSC Foundation’s Simons Center and is an exclusive professional information sharing and networking forum for those interested in keeping abreast of relevant information about national security issues.

Members of the Forum and their guests meet periodically at guest speaker events in downtown Kansas City. National and regional guest speakers representing all elements of national power (Diplomatic, Informational, Military and Economic) highlight the meetings. The Forum is nonpartisan, but elected government officials may present from time to time.

The Forum is named after Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Robert Arter, Founding Chairman of the CGSC Foundation, and Mr. Landon Rowland, the Foundation’s first major donor who was well-known in Kansas City for his keen interest in national security issues and his leadership in business and philanthropy.

ARNSF events are only open to ARNSF members and their guests. If you are not a member but are interested in joining, contact Bob Ulin at rulin@cgscf.org or visit the Forum page on www.thesimonscenter.org for more information.

The Arter-Rowland National Security Forum is an exclusive professional information sharing
and networking event exclusively for select invitees of the CGSC Foundation and its Simons Center.