Michael Linnington

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Michael S. Linnington.jpg

Michael Linnington (born 1958) is the CEO of Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) and a retired United States Army Lieutenant General. He has more than 35 years of military experience and was the first permanent Director of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA),[1] served as a Military Deputy under the Secretary of Defense, was the Commanding General of the Joint Force Headquarters-National Capital Region,[2] the Deputy Commanding General at Fort Benning, GA, Commandant of Cadets at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Policy for the International Security Assistance Force Joint Command in Kabul, Afghanistan.[3]

Early life and education[]

Linnington was born in Cape May, New Jersey[4] and grew up in the Villas section of the Lower Township, New Jersey. He attended the former St. Raymond's Roman Catholic School while working in a local restaurant and nearby Citgo gas station.[5] He then graduated Valley Forge Military Academy in 1976.[3]

In 1980, he graduated from U.S. Military Academy at West Point where he met his wife, Brenda.[5][6] He has a master's degrees in Applied Mathematics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and in National Security Strategy from the National War College.[3]

Military career[]

Linnington with Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, Nawa, Afghanistan, Nov. 11, 2010
  • Deputy Commanding General [3] in command of 75,000 troops at Fort Benning, GA.[5][when?]
  • Promoted to Brigadier General in 2007.[5]
  • Commandant of Cadets at West Point.[5][3] beginning May 2008.[6]
    • In 2009 Linnington testified to a U.S. Senate subcommittee on military suicides and prevention efforts at West Point.[7]
  • Fought in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.[5]
    • Commanded the 3rd Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division,[5][3] also known as the Screaming Eagles.[8]
    • Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Policy for the International Security Assistance Force Joint Command, Kabul, Afghanistan.[3][when?]
  • Fought in Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq.[5]
    • Served directly under Gen. David H. Petraeus.[5]
  • Commanding General of the Military District of Washington/Joint Force Headquarters-National Capital Region.[3]
    Linnington with President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall, Washington, D.C., May 28, 2012.
  • Military Deputy to the Under Secretary of Defense (Personnel and Readiness)[3] from 2013 to 2015.[11]

Awards[]

  • Expert Infantryman's Badge[3]
  • Combat Infantryman's Badge[3]
  • Bronze Star Medal[5]
  • Legion of Merit[5]
  • Distinguished Service Medal[5]

Post-Military Career[]

Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA)[]

In 2014, two organizations, the Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office and the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command were merged into the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). Its mission was to account for missing personnel to their families and provide accurate and timely details of their story. Lt. Gen. Michael S. Linnington (Ret.) was its first permanent director.[1][12][3] When Linnington took over, his priorities were to continue the mission during reorganization without disrupting field operations, finish reorganization of conflict accounting, streamline and modernize operations and communications, improve communications to stakeholders, and expand partnerships.[13]

During his time as director, the agency nearly doubled identification of missing servicemen.[14]

Wounded Warrior Project (WWP)[]

On July 18, 2016, Lt. Gen. Michael S. Linnington (Ret.) was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Wounded Warrior Project,[3] a nonprofit veteran service organization that provided programs for veterans injured in service on or after 9/11.[15] He told a reporter he felt compelled to lead WWP after he observed the organization began suffering from a media scandal in 2016.[16] The allegations of the scandal were later disproved by several audits and investigations held by third parties including the Better Business Bureau's Wise Giving Alliance. Media coverage resulted in a severe drop in donations and revenue.[17] As a result, Linnington's first actions were focused on reducing costs while maximizing impact from veteran programs,[16] including a pay cut from the previous WWP CEO salary.[18]

On March 9, 2017 Linnington testified to Congress about veteran healthcare needs highlighting four major areas:[19][20][21]

  1. Collaboration between government and nonprofits
  2. Improving care for veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI)
  3. Improving health insurance for severely injured veterans
  4. Extending In Vitro Fertilization benefits provided by the VA

On February 5, 2019, Linnington announced to ABC/NBC owned First Coast News that WWP has "turned the corner" and is doing more with less resources. "We are serving more warriors today than ever before in impactful ways that change their lives."[22]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "DPAA Director Michael Linnington". HistoryNet. 2015-11-23. Retrieved 2018-12-14.
  2. ^ a b http://www.washingtontimes.com, The Washington Times. "Military maps out Obama inauguration security". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2018-12-14.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m tbrennan (2016-01-12). "Lieutenant General Michael Linnington USA (Ret.) '76". Valley Forge Military Academy and College. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  4. ^ The United States Army | Military District of Washington
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Writer, RICHARD DEGENER Staff. "Major general from Lower Township heads task force providing military support for Obama's inauguration". Press of Atlantic City. Retrieved 2018-12-14.
  6. ^ a b "Linningtin returns to West Point". Ledger-Enquirer. 2008-05-01. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  7. ^ "Military Suicides". C-SPAN. 2009-03-18. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  8. ^ "Operations in Iraq". C-SPAN. 2003-08-08. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  9. ^ "President Barack Obama Walks With Gen. Michael Linnington". The White House. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  10. ^ "150th Anniversary of President Lincoln's Grand Review". C-SPAN. 2011-11-12. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  11. ^ "GKCCF Nonprofit Search". gkccf.guidestar.org. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  12. ^ "Pentagon names 1st permanent director of new POW/MIA accounting agency". Stars and Stripes. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  13. ^ Temin, Tom (2015-08-24). "Lt. Gen. Michael Linnington: Updating the POW-MIA Accounting Agency's mission". Federal News Network. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  14. ^ "Wounded Warrior Project Is Getting a New CEO". Fortune. 2016-07-17. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  15. ^ Bauerlein, David (2018-04-23). "Wounded Warrior Project reports another down year for donations, but sees a rebound". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  16. ^ a b Gardner, Lynnsey (2016-09-02). "UNCUT: Wounded Warrior Project CEO Mike Linnington's interview with I-TEAM". News 4 Jax. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  17. ^ Cahn, Dianna (2017-05-08). "Wounded Warrior Project donations drop $70 million, but CEO says charity is on the rebound". Stars and Stripes. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  18. ^ Wax-Thibodeaux, Emily (2017-02-08). "Wounded Warrior Project cleared of 'spending lavishly,' report finds". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  19. ^ "United States Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs". www.veterans.senate.gov. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  20. ^ "Wounded Warrior Project CEO Meets with Congress". Wounded Warrior Project Newsroom. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  21. ^ "Global Health & Pharma - Wounded Warrior Project CEO". www.ghp-news.com. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  22. ^ Amaro, Kenneth (2019-02-05). "Wounded Warrior Project has 'turned the corner'; Soldier Ride planned for weekend team building". First Coast News. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
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