Clifford L. Stanley was educated at
South Carolina State University, graduating with a
bachelor's degree in
psychology in 1969. Upon graduation, Stanley was
commissioned as a
second lieutenant in the
United States Marine Corps. After completing
The Basic School in
Quantico, Virginia, he served as a fiscal and supply officer. After redesignation as an
infantry officer, he was a
platoon commander;
company commander in
3rd Battalion, 8th Marines;
commanding officer of
Headquarters Company,
4th Marines; the
executive officer of
1st Battalion, 6th Marines; and then commanding officer of the
1st Marines. Stanley was the first
African American to command a United States Marine regiment. In 1977, Stanley was awarded an M.S. in
counseling by
Johns Hopkins University. He later attended the
Amphibious Warfare School (1978) (see
Marine Corps University), the
Naval War College (1983), the
U.S. Marine Corps Command and Staff College (1984) (see
Marine Corps University), and the
National War College (1988). of the
United States Marine Corps. In the Marine Corps, Stanley served as a psychology and leadership instructor at the
United States Naval Academy; executive officer of the
Marine Corps Institute and parade commander at
Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C.; special assistant and Marine Corps aide for the
Assistant Secretary of the Navy; and as a desk officer in the Office of the
Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at
the Pentagon. Other assignments include: depot inspector and commander,
Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island; as one of the
White House Fellows, he served as special assistant to the
director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
fleet marine officer of the
United States Second Fleet, stationed on board the
USS Mount Whitney (LCC-20); assistant deputy chief of staff for manpower and reserve affairs (Manpower Plans & Policy); director of public affairs at
Headquarters Marine Corps,
Washington, D.C.;
commanding general of
Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms; and finally as commanding general of
Marine Corps Base Quantico. Stanley retired in 2002, having achieved the rank of
major general. He holds the
Legion of Merit,
Defense Meritorious Service Medal,
Meritorious Service Medal with gold star,
Navy Commendation Medal, and
Navy Achievement Medal. He resigned a year later. In 2004, Stanley became president of
Scholarship America, where he served until 2009. He has also served as a member of the
board of directors of the White House Fellowship Association and of the McCormick Educational Foundation. He also served on the board of
trustees for Spalding University, as the district chair for the Northern District of the
Boy Scouts of America, on the
board of governors for the Civil War and Underground Railroad Museum of Philadelphia (now the
Civil War Museum of Philadelphia), and as the president of the Philadelphia Alumni Chapter of the South Carolina State University Alumni Association. In October 2009,
President Barack Obama nominated Stanley as Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. After he was
confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Stanley was sworn into office on February 16, 2010. In November 2009, a private non-profit organization,
Americans for Limited Government, published a "nominee alert" that cited various reasons why it believed Stanley should not have been selected for this position. Press reports in late 2011 indicated the Department of Defense's inspector general was investigating Stanley's office due to "highly detailed allegations of gross mismanagement and abuse of power." His resignation was announced 27 October 2011. ==Personal==