WEST POINT, N.Y. –Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates announced today that the President has nominated Lt. Gen. David H. Huntoon, Jr., for reappointment to the rank of lieutenant general with assignment as the 58th Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy. Huntoon is currently serving as Director of the Army Staff, U. S. Army, Washington, D.C.

Lieutenant Gen. Franklin L. “Buster” Hagenbeck, who is retiring, will pass the command to Huntoon in a ceremony July 19.

“Huntoon’s selection is great news for West Point. His experience and wide range of assignments are exactly what is needed to prepare cadets for the many challenges they will face,” said Hagenbeck.

Huntoon, who graduated from West Point in 1973, received his Master of Arts Degree in International Relations from Georgetown University. His military education includes the Infantry Officer Basic and Advanced courses, Army Command and General Staff College and School of Advanced Military Studies.

Huntoon has commanded at every level from company through regiment. Other assignments include the Deputy Director of Plans, XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, N.C., and Operation Desert Storm, Saudi Arabia; Commander, 3rd Infantry Regiment, The Old Guard, Fort Myer, Va.; Executive Officer to the Chief of Staff, U.S. Army, Washington, D.C., and Commandant, U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pa.

About West Point
Ranked the “Top College in the Country” by Forbes and “Top Public Liberal Arts College” by US News & World Report, the U.S. Military Academy is a four-year co-educational federal undergraduate liberal arts college located 50 miles north of New York City.  The world's preeminent leader development institution, it was founded in 1802 as America's first college of engineering.  Its mission remains constant—to educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets so that each graduate is a commissioned leader of character committed to the values of Duty, Honor, Country and prepared for a career of professional excellence and service to the Nation as an officer in the United States Army.  For more information, go to www.westpoint.edu.