Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates will serve as speaker for The College of William & Mary’s Charter Day ceremony on Feb. 8.
Gates, invested as the college’s 24th chancellor last year, is a 1965 alumnus of William & Mary. A former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Gates will help recognize the contributions of another former CIA employee, Lois Critchfield, to the college. Critchfield, called a “longtime friend of William & Mary” in a press release, will receive an honorary degree at the event.
The Charter Day ceremony, which is free and open to the public, marks the 320th anniversary of the college receiving its royal charter from King William III and Queen Mary II of England.
Gates retired as Secretary of Defense in 2011 after leading the Department of Defense under both President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama. Before serving as defense secretary, Gates held roles in the Executive Branch during the tenure of eight presidents.
Gates studied history at the college, where he was recognized with the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award when he graduated. Soon after, he joined the CIA and rose through the ranks to become the agency’s director, from 1991 to 1993. He has been awarded numerous accolades over his career, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honor a president can bestow on a civilian.
He will help celebrate the contributions of Critchfield, who is credited as instrumental in the expansion of Middle Eastern Studies at the university.
For many years during her 28-year CIA career, Critchfield worked in the Middle East, where her husband, James, once served as an economic development advisor to the Sultan of Oman. With her encouragement, His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Oman presented the university with a gift to establish a professorship in Middle East Studies in 2011.
She has served as a member of the advisory council and steering committee for the Wendy and Emery Reves Center for International Studies. In 2003, she created the James H. Critchfield Memorial Endowment for Middle East Studies. Since then, the endowment has supported a variety of activities on campus and in Washington, D.C. and has supported 48 W&M students studying in Egypt, the Arabian Peninsula and the Gulf. In addition, W&M hosts the Critchfield Conference in Middle Eastern Studies every two years.
In 2005, Critchfield received the college’s Lord Botetourt Award, which is given to non-alumni friends of the college who have contributed to its success. The following year, she was named an honorary alumna.
