CPT Will Oakley

CPT Will Oakley is an instructor in the Department of Social Sciences at West Point. He grew up in Lake Forest, Illinois, as the oldest of three brothers.

A 2016 West Point graduate, he competed on the policy debate team and commissioned with a Bachelor of Science in international relations.

CPT Oakley has led infantry and military intelligence teams in light, motorized, airborne, and joint organizations. He deployed in support of Operation Inherent Resolve (2019-20) and the United States Special Operations Command mission in Somalia (2022-23).

He holds a master’s in public policy from the Harvard Kennedy School. His research focuses on security cooperation, agency theory, crisis bargaining, and violent spillover in civil wars.