Part 3: from Baghdad to Buckeye

Photo courtesy of Peter Mansoor
Mansoor, Gen. David Petraeus, Ali Khedery, Ambassador Ryan Crocker's special assistant, Ambassador Ryan Crocker and Sadi Othman, Gen. Petraeus' senior adviser, talk strategy in Iraq in May.

This is the last of a three-part series on retired Army Col. Peter Mansoor and his eventful journey from influential military leader to controversial faculty at Ohio State. Read Part 1 and Part 2.

The closing chapter

Mansoor was not actively looking to retire from the military - after 26 years in the army, retirement was not a trivial issue. He was up for promotion to brigadier general, and with his boss, Gen. Petraeus, slated to be president of the promotion board, Mansoor's chances of earning the promotion were fairly high.

Meanwhile, one of Mansoor's mentors when he was a graduate student at OSU recommended Mansoor to the Military History chair position at the Mershon Center for International Security Studies. Mansoor thought long and diligently about the possible job.

"If selected, it would set me up for the rest of my lifetime, something I felt really passionate about, studying military history and gleaning the lessons from that in order to educate citizens that come through to Ohio State and then the wider national security community as well," Mansoor said. "But it was a tough decision to make. There wasn't a wrong choice."

Although Petraeus is losing a trusted colleague, he is happy for Mansoor.

"I'd have loved to have seen him stay in uniform and compete for promotion to brigadier general; however, he has a wonderful opportunity at OSU and is blessed with the attributes that will enable him to make a significant - perhaps unique - contribution in the military history field," Petraeus said. "He was a brilliant officer and I'm confident he'll be a brilliant professor and a great addition to an already widely-respected team."

Mansoor got the job, a joint appointment under the Department of History and the Mershon Center. But the appointment was not without controversy among history faculty. Ordinarily, a two-thirds majority among voting faculty is required for an appointment to the department; Mansoor received a majority, but not the two-thirds required, said a professor in the history department who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Although other potential hires have been denied because of the lack of a two-thirds majority vote, Department of History Chair Peter Hahn overrode the decision, which caused more tension, the professor said.

"People have been denied promotions before (for other positions), and it's kind of a slap in the face," the professor said.

A meeting that discussed whether Mansoor's original denial should be overridden drew the most tension in the department, the professor said. "There was speculation that (Hahn) was under intense pressure from the Mershon Center, which already voted to hire him, and from the president's office," the professor said. But the speculation was never confirmed. "The lack of transparency is the problem."

Hahn acknowledged the override as unusual, but not unprecedented, and in this case he had a different judgment than the minority who opposed his appointment. The accusation of intense pressure is exaggerated, he said.

"It was very clear what the Mershon Center desired; they ran him through their process with glowing recommendation," Hahn said. "If it wasn't unanimous within the Mershon Center it was near unanimous. Had I been convinced that he was not right for the History Department I would not have accepted it."

Hahn said opposition within the department about new hires is nothing new. "During any search in the history department and most others at OSU that I know about, there emerges disagreement among faculty who to hire; it's not unusual," Hahn said. "It's also highly usual that once a candidate comes to campus he or she is welcomed, so the discontent among the faculty was nothing serious." He espoused Mansoor's qualifications for the job, citing his prior teaching experience at West Point and his academic background from the army and OSU.

The history professor who spoke anonymously said Mansoor's personal role in the war was not the major issue. "The war itself was the elephant in the room, not his role in it, but how does it look for a major research university to hire Gen. Petraeus' right hand man," the professor said.

Mansoor asks his colleagues not to prejudge him based on his past experiences. "I was a professional welfare officer for 26 years; I did my best to serve my country and accomplish the missions I was given," Mansoor said. "Ultimately, the decision to go into Iraq was made by civilian leadership, as it should be under our Constitution. I'm not sure we want to go down the road of blaming the people who have to carry out the orders for the decisions that are made by our senior political leaders."

Despite the politics behind his appointment to the university, Mansoor,48, is thrilled to come back to his alma mater. He and his family live in a house in neighboring suburb Dublin, and are sinking their roots deep in Columbus. "We love Ohio and we plan to stay in Ohio for the rest of our lives," Mansoor said, "and I plan to retire as a Buckeye."

Peter Mansoor will sign copies of his book, "Baghdad at Sunrise: A Brigade Commander's War in Iraq," at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7 at Barnes & Noble at 1598 High St.

Tom Knox can be reached at knox.105@osu.edu.