Frank McKenzie arrived at The Citadel from Birmingham, Alabama, in August 1975, a first-year cadet in November Company who, by the college’s account, knew little about the school or what the next four years would mean for him.
On July 1, he walked the short distance from Quarters One to Bond Hall and reported for work as its president.
Gen. Kenneth “Frank” McKenzie Jr., a retired Marine whose last military job was commander of U.S. Central Command, is The Citadel’s 21st president. He was inaugurated Sept. 25 in McAlister Field House before the full South Carolina Corps of Cadets.
“Whatever I’ve achieved in life, I owe it to the four years I spent here on the Ashley River,” he said in his remarks, according to the college.
The Citadel’s Board of Visitors chose him unanimously on March 21, the morning of the college’s annual Corps Day, the college said. He was one of four finalists. He succeeded Gen. Glenn M. Walters, a retired Marine and a 1979 classmate, who announced his retirement in December 2025 and stepped down at the end of June.
“Having Gen. McKenzie, with his experience as a theater commander and an academic institution leader, agree to lead The Citadel is a reflection of the outstanding institution we currently have and our bright future,” board chairman Greg Delleney said in the March announcement.
McKenzie was commissioned through the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps program at The Citadel, where he majored in English, and graduated in May 1979. He spent 42 years in the Marine Corps as a career infantry officer, the college said, with posts including commander of Marine Forces Central Command and director of the Joint Staff.
His final command put him in charge of U.S. military operations across the Middle East and South Asia. Defense Department photo captions show he took over U.S. Central Command in Tampa, Florida, on March 28, 2019, and handed it to Army Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla on April 1, 2022.
He also holds an advanced degree from The Citadel Graduate College, is an honors graduate of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College and the School of Advanced Warfighting, and was a Commandant of the Marine Corps Fellow at the National Defense University, according to the college.
After he retired from active duty, McKenzie became executive director of the University of South Florida’s Global and National Security Institute in May 2022. Two months later he also took charge of the Florida Center for Cybersecurity, known as Cyber Florida. Along the way he wrote a book about his career, The Post and Courier noted in an Aug. 26 profile.
“The Citadel has been very important to me,” he told the newspaper. “This opportunity came open and I couldn’t say no to it.”
The first class to arrive on his watch reported Aug. 15. The college counted 749 cadet recruits from 38 states and six countries, including 119 women, the largest group of female recruits in its history. About 56.5% came from South Carolina.
“Our product,” McKenzie told the parents of the incoming class, “is leadership.”
At his inauguration, he described the college as being in a strong position, citing recent state and federal support, full barracks, strong enrollment and growth in The Citadel Graduate College. In September, U.S. News & World Report ranked The Citadel the top regional university in the South for the third year in a row, the college said.
He also warned against complacency. He pointed to a shrinking pool of potential students and uncertain future finances, according to the college’s account of the speech.
His plan, as he outlined it, is to expand the college’s academic offerings in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and computing, recruit more students from across the country, raise faculty pay, compete for Southern Conference championships and grow the endowment.
At the center, he said, is the newly launched Krause School of Leadership and Ethics, which he described as a chance to make The Citadel a national destination for leadership education. The college broke ground on the school’s building in October 2025.
“Leadership is what differentiates us from every other school in this state and across our country,” McKenzie said. “We need to emphasize it.”
Borrowing from the British soldier and writer T.E. Lawrence, he urged the college to act on its ambitions.
“Now is the time for us to dream with our eyes open,” he said. “We have great opportunities, but we must act boldly and take advantage of our circumstances.”
He also made a promise that the college used in its headline on the ceremony: “I will be relentless.”
