Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth gives a State of the Force address at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026 in Quantico, Va. (Alex Wong/Pool Photo via AP)
- Mississippi State University was one of five institutions to receive the designation. “This distinction honors their history and recognizes their path, providing a stepping stone toward becoming a Senior Military College if they choose,” Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth delivered a “State of the Force” address on Wednesday where he announced that five U.S. universities were being designated as a “Distinguished Military College.”
Mississippi State University was among the list.
“We’re partnering with a new crop of premier higher ed institutions, including Louisiana State University, Liberty University, Tuskegee University, Mississippi State University and Hillsdale College,” Hegseth said. “These schools have stepped forward to answer the call to duty and establish new corps of cadets in partnership with the Department of War.”
At his direction, the Pentagon is expanding the “America’s Corps of Cadets” program to assist the universities and colleges and increase the pipeline of “patriotic leaders of character” commissioned into the Joint Force.
“By embedding continuous military discipline and leadership development into new institutions — by growing our Corps of Cadets — the War Department will ensure our republic is defended by even more officers of unwavering character and patriotism,” Hegseth said.
The existing Corps of Cadets program has been functioning at the nation’s six Senior Military Colleges established by law, those being Texas A&M University, Norwich University, the Virginia Military Institute, The Citadel, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and North Georgia College and State University.
The five universities joining the expanded America’s Corps of Cadets program will earn “Honor School” status, granting priority in future officer commissions.
“The initial cohort of participating universities and colleges will receive this unique distinction (Distinguished Military College) as they establish their Corps of Cadets,” said Hegseth. “This distinction honors their history and recognizes their path, providing a stepping stone toward becoming a Senior Military College if they choose.”
Mississippi State President Mark Keenum said the university is deeply honored to have the opportunity to serve the country in a way that is part of its institutional DNA.
“We were established as a land-grant university and a military school. We have robust U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps components – and we have one of the nation’s premier Centers for American Veterans,” Keenum said.
Mississippi’s senior U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, who also serves as the Senate Armed Services Committee chairman, called the new designation at Mississippi State terrific news in a social media post.
“This creates new opportunities for students to earn a commission as an officer in our military and builds leadership skills students will carry with them for life,” Wicker said.
During his Wednesday address, Secretary Hegseth also looked back over the past year and reemphasized the War Department’s priorities while announcing other new initiatives, including:
- The creation of a new 4-star level combatant command: Autonomous Warfare Command. Autowarco, Hegseth said, will focus on building autonomous and robotic capabilities across the joint force in “the fastest peacetime shift in modern history.”
- An effort to study the future of warfare titled “Project Meridian.” Hegseth said the Pentagon’s chief technology officer would partner with members of the private sector, namely Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich, to study the future of warfare.
- A future program that aims to align basing and infrastructure projects to ensure they are collectively advancing toward greater independence. “Fortress America,” Hegseth said, calls for every American military installation to eventually run under its own power, hardening every installation on American soil against intrusion and bringing critical supply chains home.
- Calling for a new, state-of-the-art military installation through a project titled, “The Next Great American Base.” Hegseth said the base will be a dynamic, self-sustaining power projection platform, and that leaders of every state in the union would be able to provide a “sales pitch” as to why the new installation should be in their state.
- Establishing an Office of Religious Affairs. Hegseth said religious services in the military have been neglected and bureaucratized for too long.
The secretary emphasized that the six announcements were all for the warfighters, as he and the War Department view them as the top 1% of society.
