Secretary of War Pete Hegseth Signs Directive Halting Tenured Civilian Positions at U.S. Military Service Academies

Sept. 29, 2026 |

The Department of War continues to reform our educational institutions to ensure they remain laser-focused on lethality and readiness.
 
To that end, the Secretary of War directed the Military Departments to immediately terminate the practice of appointing civilian faculty to tenured positions at the U.S. Military Service Academies. This directly addresses the critical issues of academic stagnation and complacency that are often associated with tenure, and which threaten to dilute the academies' primary focus on warfighting and tactical dominance.
 
In place of tenure, the Military Departments will implement new hiring plans to prioritize flexibility and faculty contribution to the warfighting mission, ensuring future officers are unequivocally prepared to lead our Service members and win on the modern battlefield.
 
Click here to read the memo.