Mr. Stuart Scheller is the Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary of War for Personnel and Readiness. In this role, he leverages his extensive experience as a Marine Corps officer and in entrepreneurial pursuits to implement the President of the United States’ and Secretary of War’s priorities for the Total Force. As Senior Advisor, his key focus areas include reviewing the facts and circumstances surrounding the U.S. military’s 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan and reinforming the role of merit in the military promotion process.

As a Lieutenant Colonel in the Marine Corps, Mr. Scheller gained critical leadership experience in both applied and theoretical settings, serving in multiple command roles and key staff billets. Today, he draws on those experiences to ensure that the Department’s lethality and warfighting focused initiatives take into account the needs of our uniformed personnel. He has been frequently sought out to articulate the challenges that the military faces and authored the best-selling book, "Crisis of Command."

Mr. Scheller served 17 years in the Marine Corps as an Infantry officer. He Served as the Warfighting Director at The Basic School, as an Executive Officer at a MARSOC Support Battalion, a Regimental Operations Officer, and a Battalion Commander. His deployments include Lebanon in 2006, Iraq in 2007, Afghanistan from 2010 to 2011, and South Korea in 2015. He was awarded the Bronze Star and a Commendation with V for Valor, for his service in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Mr. Scheller holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Cincinnati, and a Master of Science from the Marine Corps University. Mr. Scheller has three sons, Paul, Sean, and Mark.