Tidal McCoy has supported IWP almost since its inception. Having spent 25 years in the national security field, he understands the importance of an excellent education for professionals in this field. When John Lenczowski was founding the school, Mr. McCoy found, “It was clear to me that this needed to be done.”
Mr. McCoy has found that young people – those who implement policy and do the ground work – are vital for our national security. When he served as a combat unit commander in Germany and Vietnam at the beginning of his own career, he came to believe that, “The real cutting edge of national security is young Americans who are willing to put on a uniform and risk their lives.” And these young people were not only risking their lives, he noted, but dealing with challenges like class and racial tensions within their own unit and anti-war sentiments across America, while trying to come together as a cohesive unit.
Mr. McCoy observes, “For all the national security policy I was involved in [shaping] later [under] Reagan and that I was implementing in the Pentagon, the bottom line is that you have to have officers who are well-trained, relatively well-paid, respected by the American people, and prepared to make a sacrifice for their country… This is also true for junior intelligence officers, collectors, and analysts.”
To IWP students who are beginning their careers, Mr. McCoy advises, “Continue your outside education – whether it’s reading a journal, reading on the plane, taking specialized courses at IWP or within your own agencies. Go to the classified library at your agency, read the material, and show a strong interest in the substance of your work.”
And the bottom line, he has found, is to “Seek the truth and speak the truth,” even when those in power may try to twist the facts to their own political purposes. He has found that, “IWP is one of the few schools that teaches universal clarity and morality, instead of mixing friends and enemies of our country.”
In addition, he has found, “IWP offers personal attention to students, and the professors are practitioners, as well as theoreticians. Freedom exists in America today, and IWP prepares leaders to preserve this freedom.”
He has helped IWP in numerous ways over the years – by connecting the Institute with others who support its mission, with his own financial support for the Annual Fund, student scholarships through the 1947 Club, and for the internship program (in which his son is participating this summer), and, as of this past May, through service on the Board of Trustees.
“I would urge other donors to take a stronger look at IWP, and do more if they can so the Institute can expand and instruct more students. I’m extremely pleased to be associated with IWP since its earliest days and to be involved with it today.”
Tidal McCoy is the founder of Washington Capital Partners, and recent co-founder and Vice Chairman of the CyberWarfare executive search firm www.benchmarkblack.com.
Mr. McCoy has enjoyed a thirty-year career spanning active military service, Presidential-appointed government positions, and senior executive experience within the aerospace and defense industry. Prior to forming WCP, Ty served as Senior Vice President for Government Relations at Thiokol, now Alliant Techsystems Inc. (NYSE: ATK). From 1981 to 1989, Ty held several Presidential-appointed positions within the government, culminating in his role as Acting Secretary of the Air Force in 1988. From 1979-1981, Ty served as Assistant for National Security Affairs to Senator Jake Garn of Utah and, in 1977, served as the Scientific Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Engineering, and Systems. He was Staff Assistant and later Deputy Assistant to the Secretary of Defense from 1973-77. He served on the National Security Council staff, Executive Office of the President, in 1973; and he was a member of the long-range planning and net assessment group in the office of the Secretary of Defense, 1972 to 1973. Ty served as a combat unit commander in Germany and Vietnam and as an intelligence officer with DIA, CIA, and NSA.
He serves on several corporate and non-profit Boards of Directors and is currently Chairman of the Board of the Space Transportation Association of the United States. He is also the Vice Chairman of the Cyber, Space, and Intelligence Association.
He is the recipient of numerous civilian and military medals and honors. Ty received his B.S. in Engineering from the United States Military Academy in West Point, N.Y. and an M.S. in Business Financial Management from George Washington University. Ty and his wife, Judy, reside in Virginia with their two children.