Return to Pointer View home page August 19,  2005

Colpo returns to USMA for third time -- now as Chief of Staff 

Story and photo by Spc. Benjamin Gruver
Staff Writer   

“Honored and blessed” is how Col. Michael Colpo explained his feelings on taking over his new position as Chief of Staff of the U.S. Military Academy and being back at West Point for the third time. 

Colpo, a USMA graduate of the Class of 1978, recently took over the chief of staff position replacing Col. Gregory Dyson who will remain on the USMA staff as a special projects officer for the superintendent. 

“When they asked, ‘Would you be interested in being the chief of staff of the United States Military Academy?’ I thought, ‘Ah man, that sounds like a great opportunity, a great place to end up,’” he explained, who had begun thinking about retirement after 27 years of active duty service. 

“Just keep running until it is over,” is how Colpo explained how he wants to end his career, by creating some energy, while providing leadership and contributing as he goes out the door. 

For now, Colpo said his main goal is to improve and enhance the operations and communications of the military academy and installation and assist the superintendent with running the day-to-day operations. 

“Clearly, I just want to leave this place three years from now better, improved, more functional, synchronized and identify those areas where we can improve, and I intend to go out there and do that,” Colpo said. 

The Freeport, Pa. native said he had no idea what he was getting into when he came to the academy for the first time as a cadet, growing up in an area of coal miners, steel mill workers and blue collar families. 

When it was time to look into going to college, Colpo started looking into getting a scholarship as his family didn’t have a lot of resources or money. He remembered seeing one high school classmate fail to make it through the U.S. Naval Academy and realized that the military academies were a challenge and not for everyone. 

“Even though I was young, I was in the notion that anybody could go to Penn State or Pitt and graduate and do okay, but it took a special person, it took a special dedication, (a person) who wants to serve to be able to go to an academy and do well and make it through that program,” Colpo said. “I wanted to feel good about myself, that I was doing more than a normal person and I certainly wanted to take any financial burden off my family as far as scholarship and things like that, so I applied to all three academies.” 

After completing his four years at West Point, Colpo went through the Infantry Officer’s Basic Course and headed to Fort Lewis, Wash., where he spent five years serving in numerous positions with the 2nd Battalion, 60th Infantry Regiment, including rifle platoon leader, anti-tank platoon leader, company executive officer, battalion air operations officer and company commander. 

Going out into the Army for the first time, Colpo said he had the kind of apprehension that many young officers have despite going to West Point, Airborne school, Ranger school and OBC. He wondered how prepared he was, how well he would lead and how Soldiers would react to him. 

“As soon as I got out there it wasn’t uncomfortable to talk to a Pfc.,” Colpo said. “It was great, and they loved seeing you dig a foxhole with them and to get dirty in the motor pool and help them break track and put your coveralls on and lead by example.” 

According to Colpo, one never forgets the leadership lessons of their young days when serving with Soldiers closely as a platoon leader and company commander. 

“You can never forget that there are people out there that are serving,” Colpo said. 

After completing his master’s degree in counselor education at Pennsylvania State University, Colpo came back to the academy as a tactical officer for Company D-2 in 1985. 

“The first time around there is no question what attracted me back,” Colpo said.  “When I was a cadet, the person who had the most impact on me was my TAC, Maj. Bob Harkins, a Vietnam vet, who went up and down Hamburger Hill about three times with the 101st (Airborne Division).” 

The Silver Star awarded Infantry Ranger took an interest in Colpo, his life and his development as a cadet. Colpo specifically remembered working closely with Harkins when he was a cadet company commander as a firstie. 

“There was no person who had more impact on me in my professional development and my attitude of being positive going into the Army than my TAC Officer,” Colpo said.

“So,” Colpo said, “I needed to go do the same thing. I wanted to  be a TAC officer and impact cadets like my TAC did, role modeling, counseling, developing, spending time with them, caring about them, telling them what the Army’s about. I could not think of a more important job.” 

For two years Colpo served as a TAC and two more years as a regimental executive officer before attending the Command and General Staff College. 

From 1990 to 1994, Colpo continued his service at Fort Wainwright, Alaska with the 2nd Brigade, 6th Infantry Division and the 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry (Manchu) in various positions including as the brigade personnel officer, battalion operation officer, brigade operations officer and as the brigade executive officer. 

Colpo then served as an infantry and Special Forces colonel assignments officer at the U.S. Total Army Personnel Command in Alexandria, Va. 

In the later part of his career, much of Colpo’s time was affiliated with the U.S. Army War College at Carlisle Barracks, Pa., where he was garrison commander from 1996 to 1998. 

He graduated from the Army War College in 1999, and after a two-year stint back with PERSCOM, (now Human Resources Command), he came back to the Army War College as the director of military assistance to civil authorities in the department of command leadership and management for a year before he was assigned as the chief of staff of the Army War College. 

Having already taken on the role as chief of staff at the Army War College it will clearly be a benefit to Colpo in serving his new role at USMA as both places have similarities. 

The Army War College has some unique missions just like West Point, Colpo explained. Both places deal with academics and accreditation issues and have alumni associations. Carlisle Barracks is also similar in that it has installation challenges just like West Point such as getting resources, continually working on facilities as well as all the normal challenges of running an organization and dealing with people, guiding them, mentoring them, training them and getting evaluations done and giving out awards. 

“I am confident that the experience as the chief of staff has prepared me better to be a successful chief of staff here at USMA,” Colpo said. 

The father of two comes here with his wife Vera Lynne, originally from Cornwall, N.Y. Their children Jeff and Melissa both attend Pennsylvania State University. 

Colpo, who met his wife while attending USMA, is looking forward to taking up his pastime of hunting and fishing as much as his time will allow while he is here. 

“I enjoy being out in the woods along the trout streams, it seems very relaxing to me,” Colpo said, who started fishing and hunting as a child with his dad. “It is not the reason I hunt, but there isn’t much that ties in closer to being an infantry Soldier than hunting. The skills are the same. You have to sneak through the woods. You have to be a marksman. You have to understand the way the wind is blowing and the impact. It certainly ties into being a Soldier-type guy.

“I really just see myself as a normal person just trying to contribute to this place in so many ways,” Colpo added. “I am just another person trying to help the academy move in the right direction.”