The Whole of Government Center of Excellence began as the number one recommendation from the VA Commission on Military Installations and Defense Activities’ "Growing the Military Mission in the Commonwealth” (pdf) in May 2015.
With funding from the Commonwealth of Virginia, W&M undertook a six-month feasibility study concerning the prospect of building a Center of Excellence on national security at W&M that would adopt a “whole of government” approach to research and training in this field. A W&M team led by Vice Provost for International Affairs Stephen E. Hanson carried out a broad and extensive set of external and internal stakeholder interviews to gauge the main administrative, financial and logistical challenges involved in building such a WGC.
At the conclusion of the study, W&M determined that there is such a need for the creation of a new university center devoted to research and to training leaders to find solutions to current and future national security challenges. These challenges, by their nature, require the collaboration of multiple branches of the U.S. military and civilian government agencies at the federal, state, and local level. W&M, which is widely seen as possessing a unique combination of world-class academic expertise on international affairs, geographic proximity to both Hampton Roads military bases and to Washington, D.C., and a long tradition of support for public service and civic engagement on major national and global issues, is a natural home.
The pilot year of the Whole of Government Center of Excellence was generously supported by the Hampton Roads Military and Federal Facilities Alliance (HRMFFA).
William & Mary has a deep and abiding commitment to public service. We’ve been training global leaders since our founding in 1693 as an overseas campus sponsored by King William and Queen Mary in England. General George Washington (licensed as a surveyor by W&M) served as our first Chancellor. Today, we are honored to have The Honorable Robert M. Gates ’65, L.H.D ’98 in that most significant role. William & Mary alumni are found at the highest levels in U.S. federal government agencies. We work hard to earn our reputation as a government- and military-friendly university. Above all, you’ll see us living and breathing our values.