[312] MTSU appoints special adviser for student veterans, leadership initiatives

MURFREESBORO — Lt. Gen. Keith M. Huber, who recently retired from the U.S. Army after almost 40 years of service, joins MTSU this semester as senior adviser for veterans and leadership initiatives.

President Sidney A. McPhee and Provost Brad Bartel welcomed Huber to the Murfreesboro campus Thursday (Feb. 5), holding a reception for the general in the Tom H. Jackson Building, just near MTSU’s Veterans Memorial.

McPhee said Huber will examine the university’s policies and practices for the recruitment and student success of veterans and their family members.

“We are proud that MTSU has been recognized year after year by national publications — such as Military Times and G.I. Jobs Magazine — as being one of the top universities in the U.S. for veteran education,” McPhee said.

“But we also recognize that there is much that needs to be done here at our university to better serve this important community.”

Huber’s 38 years of service included most recently command of the Combined Joint Interagency Task Force 435 in Afghanistan.

He also served as a company commander, battalion operations officer, brigade and division operations officer, battalion commander and director of civil-military affairs with the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell. 

Huber graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1975 and received a Master of Public Administration degree from Golden State University in 1984.

“I am appreciative of this opportunity to continue to serve our veterans,” Huber said. “I acknowledge and admire the True Blue spirit and the current environment at MTSU and how they treat our veterans and their precious family members.”

McPhee said Huber’s “vast military experience, his ability to tackle and excel in often challenging situations and his devotion to the men and women who have served our nation in our Armed Forces give him a unique perspective and the tools necessary to help us become a national leader in veteran education.”

Huber will reside in the Provost’s office. However, Bartel said, he serves “as a direct adviser to both the president and me as he explores ways for us to become a more valuable resource to veterans and their families.

“We are already meeting regularly and I am very pleased by the strong start he has made in such a short time on campus,” Bartel said.

Among those in attendance at Thursday’s reception was Many-Bears Grinder, commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Veterans Affairs.