Lt. Gen. John G. Castellaw, a 1972 agriculture graduate of UTM, will speak to students and faculty at 7 p.m. Oct. 10, in the Humanities Auditorium.

The title of his presentation is “Iraq and Afghanistan, the Way Ahead.” Castellaw has traveled all over the world and is currently completing service as the chief of staff for the U.S. Central Command. His next assignment will take him to Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, Washington, D.C.

The event is sponsored by the Department of Management, Marketing and Political Science, International Studies Program, the College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences and the Center for Global Studies and International Education. The event is free and open to the public.

A native of Crockett County, Castellaw was commissioned upon graduation from UTM. His early tours were in Marine units deploying to the Mediterranean, Western Pacific and Middle East, where he served as a platoon commander and company executive officer in the 1st Amphibian Tractor Battalion, as an inspector-instructor with the 4th Tank Battalion, as a flight line officer and as an assistant operations officer.

Promoted to field grade officer, he served as the executive officer of Headquarters and Maintenance Squadron 26. He then commanded Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron (HMM) 264 during its Mediterranean deployment as the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s Aviation Combat Element. As a colonel, he commanded Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1 (MAWTS-1). His general officer commands were the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade in Okinawa, US FORCES INTERFET, conducting stability and security operations in East Timor, and the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.

Castellaw’s staff officer tours began in Marine Aircraft Groups 26 and 36. He served two tours in the Department of Aviation, Headquarters Marine Corps. His previous joint staff assignments were in the J3 Operations Directorate, U.S. European Command and with the Command Group, United Nations Protection Force Bosnia-Herzegovina, during the siege of Sarajevo.

He attended the Basic School, the Amphibious Warfare School, the Armed Forces Staff College and the NATO Defense College.

Castellaw, a CH-46 pilot, is a graduate of the Marine Corps Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) Course. He received a master’s degree in military studies from the American Military University.

Castellaw’s personal decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal and Legion of Merit. He was the 1990 recipient of the Cunningham Award as the Marine Aviator of the Year.