COL Christopher Morrell

COL Chris Morrell is the director of the cyber science academic program and an associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the United States Military Academy (USMA).

He graduated from USMA in 2000 and commissioned as a signal officer. He has served as an information systems management officer and now as an academy professor. From 2018–2021, he was USMA’s first chief technology officer and director of information technology operations.

COL Morrell's previous assignments include battalion signal officer, 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, Fort Richardson, Alaska; node center platoon leader, 21st Signal Company, 172nd Arctic Infantry Brigade (Separate), Fort Richardson, Alaska; signal detachment commander, 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Lewis, Washington; battalion signal officer, 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Lewis, Washington; and chief of enterprise engineering, 335th Signal Command (Theater), Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. While assigned to the 1st Special Forces Group, he deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom–Afghanistan under the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan.

COL Morrell is a graduate of the Command and General Staff College, the Combined Arms and Services Staff School, the Signal Captain’s Career Course, the Signal Basic Officer Leader Course, Jumpmaster School, and Airborne School.

He holds a bachelor's degree in computer science from USMA (2000), a master's degree in computer science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2008), and a doctorate in computer engineering from Virginia Tech (2016). His certifications include Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA), and Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP).

His academic interests include network security and optimization, network management, mobile device software development, and enterprise information technology.