Association of American Universities

US Department of Defense Speeches, April 14, 2008 by Robert M. Gates

As Delivered by Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates, Washington D.C., Monday, April 14, 2008

Thank you, David, for that introduction. I'd also thank Bob Berdahl for all of his work, and Graham Spanier for his leadership of both AAU's executive committee and the National Security Higher Education Advisory Board.

It is a pleasure to attend this meeting. And it is a nice change of pace to receive such a warm welcome. Usually, my speaking engagements here in Washington start with someone asking me to raise my right hand and promise to tell the truth.

When I was president of Texas A&M University, I used to wonder whether it was scarier to be responsible for a vast, global network of spies as I had been at CIA--or be responsible for some 45,000 students between the ages of 18 and 25. Well, now I'm responsible for more than two million men and women in uniform, most of college age--and all armed.

The topic of this session is "National Security: What New Expertise is Needed?" The Defense Department and AAU have been having a conversation about this subject during the last several months, and today I want to discuss some new initiatives. I also want to offer a few thoughts about the relationship between the military and institutions of higher education--both the positives, as well as some of the areas where together we ought to be able to forge a stronger relationship.

I'd like to start with a little bit of history.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the landmark National Defense Education Act, the bill that greatly increased the federal government's role in funding education at every level. What spurred government action was Sputnik's launching a year earlier--an event that galvanized our nation's leaders to ensure that we would not fall behind the Soviet Union in math and science. Sounds like a familiar subject.

Educators led the charge. Some called the conflict a "competition in brains." The historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. said more colorfully that the United States "must return to the acceptance of eggheads and ideas if it is to meet the Russian challenge." And indeed, the years proved him right. Throughout the Cold War, universities were vital centers of new research often funded by the government--and also new ideas and even new fields of study such as game theory and Kremlinology. Federally funded low-cost loans and fellowships made graduate school broadly available for students like me.

As was the case at that time, the country is again trying to come to terms with new threats to national security. Rather than one, single entity--the Soviet Union--and one, single animating ideology--communism--we are instead facing challenges from multiple sources: a new, more malignant form of terrorism inspired by jihadist extremism, ethnic strife, disease, poverty, climate change, failed and failing states, resurgent powers, and so on. The contours of the international arena are much more complex than at any time during the Cold War. This stark reality--driven home in the years since September 11th--has led to a renewed focus on the overall structure and readiness of our government to deal with the threats of the 21st century.

Last November, I spoke at Kansas State about the overall state of our national security apparatus, and how we as a nation must devote more resources to what has been called "soft power," the elements of national power beyond the guns and steel of the military--from diplomacy to economic development and assistance, institution-building, strategic communications, and more.

One of the keys to this effort, I believe and also as I mentioned at K-State, is to find untapped resources outside of government--resources like those our universities can offer.

To be sure, there is already a strong relationship between the government and the Department of Defense in particular, and our universities. I have requested an increase in the Department's basic research budget in the coming years. This year's request for FY 09 includes $1.7 billion for basic research initiatives, a $273 million increase over last year. And I have directed a further increase of about $1 billion over the next five years for fundamental, peer-reviewed basic research--a two percent increase in real annual growth. The Defense Department is also strongly supportive of initiatives to improve math and science education--such as those recommended in the "Gathering Storm" report. You can see the effect of my prior occupations in some of these things.

I am also working on a program to improve the language skills of the military through ROTC. Currently, language training, when it occurs, generally requires that we send troops to specialized schools--in effect, pulling them off the line for a period of time. It seems to me it would be preferable to integrate this training earlier, and so we have been looking at financial incentives for ROTC cadets to take language classes while undergraduates. Some languages are not offered at all schools, and so we are looking also at ways to award grants to schools to expand their language and cultural offerings to cadets. And obviously other students would benefit as well.