A retired Army General Officer and former President of SENTEL Corporation of Alexandria VA, General Ward, the inaugural Commander of the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), successfully established the nation’s newest and uniquely positioned interagency geographic command. As the AFRICOM Commander, he was responsible for all U.S. defense and security activities on the African continent and its island nations with staff representatives from State, Commerce, Treasury, Homeland Security and other U.S. Cabinet Departments and Agencies.

Prior to commanding AFRICOM, where his visionary leadership promoted the value of forging relationships, creating partnerships, enhancing regional cooperation and the importance of sustained security engagement in pursuing U.S. national interests, General Ward served as the Deputy Commander, United States European Command, responsible for the Command’s day-to-day activities.

Ward is a decorated combat veteran and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from Morgan State University in Baltimore and a Master of Arts Degree in Political Science from The Pennsylvania State University. A Master Paratrooper, he is a graduate of the Infantry Officer Basic and Advanced courses, Fort Benning, Georgia, the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. General Ward was an assistant professor, Department of Social Sciences, teaching Political Science and Public Policy at the United States Military Academy, West Point.

Selected by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to serve as the United States Security Coordinator, Israel-Palestinian Authority in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, General Ward brought a degree of fairness and equity praised by both parties. He has held other key Army, Joint and Combined command and staff assignments over a distinguished forty-plus year career including NATO Force Commander in Bosnia, Commander 25th Infantry Division and Vice Director for Operations, J-3, The Joint Staff, during the September 2001 terror attacks. In the Pentagon, he was at the center of determining and carrying out the U.S. Government’s defense and interagency response actions to the attack. General Ward is currently a Director on several non-profit and for profit Boards.