LTG(R) Charles T. Cleveland is a native of Arizona and a 1978 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, West Point. He retired from the U.S. Army on August 1, 2015. He is currently the Senior Mentor to the Chief of Staff of the Army’s Strategic Studies Group, a Senior Fellow at the Madison Policy Forum, and an Adjunct at Rand. He serves on the Advisory Board of the nonprofit organization Spirit of America Foundation.

As the three-star Commanding General, U.S. Army Special Operations Command from 2012-2015, he led the overhaul of U.S. Army Special Operations, which improved the effectiveness and training levels of existing units, built need capability, and improved relationships within the Army, across other government agencies, in Congress, and among international Special Operations Forces partners.