Skip to Main Content

Four-Star General Receives Honorary Public Service Doctorate at Spring Commencement

News Type College News

Ohio State University President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr., right, presents retired four-star Army Gen. John M. Murray, an Ohio State graduate, with an Honorary Doctor of Public Service degree at the university’s spring commencement. (Credit: Jodi Miller)

Retired four-star Army Gen. John M. Murray, an Ohio State graduate, received an Honorary Doctor of Public Service degree at spring commencement.

Murray received four Bronze Stars for his service in senior command positions in Afghanistan between 2004 and 2015. Retired from the Army in 2021 with nearly 40 years of service, Murray began his service in 1982 after receiving a BS in business from Ohio State.

At the time of his retirement, he was commanding general of Army Futures Command, which he helped launch. Established in 2018, Army Futures Command transforms the Army to ensure war-winning future readiness by prioritizing future operational environment, research, concepts, experimentation, requirements and integration with support from industry, academia and other branches of the U.S. armed forces and multinational partners.

“Col. John Glenn embodied military service as public service to the greater good. It’s an honor to confer an honorary degree in public service to Gen. Mike Murray, another distinguished member of the U.S. military,” said Trevor Brown, dean of the John Glenn College of Public Affairs.

Retired four-star Army Gen. John M. Murray, an Ohio State graduate, is hooded for an Honorary Doctor of Public Service degree at the university’s spring commencement. (Credit: Jodi Miller)

A letter from the University President’s office to Murray commending him for the honor reads:

“This distinction is one of our university’s highest honors and recognizes your exemplary service in the United States Army including four separate deployments in senior command positions for which you received numerous well-deserved decorations. Your remarkable leadership throughout your career in roles of increasing responsibility serves as a model of excellence not only for our ROTC programs, but for every student, staff and alumni in our global Buckeye community. Ohio State is extremely fortunate to benefit from your knowledge and experience as you continue to pay forward through your engagement with the ROTC program, the History Department and the Mershon Center for International Security Studies. Your service, dedication and leadership as an Ohio State alumnus further cement our university’s proud position as one of the preeminent institutions of higher education in its support for our military branches and all those who serve.”

Murray held deputy and director roles at the Pentagon as well as domestic and overseas bases, including during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Military to Civilian Leadership Certificate

The John Glenn College of Public Affairs offers this 12-week, online leadership course for veterans to learn ways to demonstrate the value of their military experience to civilian employers. The application deadline is Nov. 11 for classes that begin Jan. 10.

He served as commanding general of Joint Task Force-3; deputy commanding general of support for U.S. Forces in Afghanistan; commander of Bagram Airfield; commanding general of the 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart, Georgia; commander of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, at Fort Hood, Texas; commander of the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division at U.S. Army Europe and Seventh Army Germany; and commander of C Company, 1-12th Infantry Battalion, 4th Infantry Division (Mechanized) at Fort Carson, Colorado.

During his career, Murray earned numerous awards and decorations, including the Distinguished Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Defense Superior Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Legion of Merit with two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Bronze Star Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters and the Defense Meritorious Service Medal. He also holds a Ranger Tab, Combat Infantryman Badge, Expert Infantryman Badge, Parachutist Badge and Air Assault Badge, among other designations.

Past recipients, Honorary Doctor of Public Service degree, The Ohio State University