Alum Major General Errol Schwartz helps troubled youth find a pathway to college

Retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Errol Schwartz is passionate about supporting students who haven’t realized their full potential. That mission is rooted in his own start at the University of the District of Columbia when a professor noticed him studying while working as a switchboard operator and told him about Federal City College, a predecessor school that merged to become UDC.

His start at UDC has led to a distinguished 41-year career in the military, work at the National Security Agency (NSA) and appointments by both Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama to serve as commanding general of the District of Columbia National Guard, the only federal Guard in the United States.

A 1980 graduate of UDC, Schwartz has also served on UDC’s Board of Trustees for 14 years. He was the commencement speaker in 2011, receiving an Honorary Doctorate. He also received the UDC Distinguished Alumni Award in 2009.

Schwartz is currently serving as chairman of the board for the National Guard Youth Foundation. The Foundation supports 39 National Guard Youth Challenge academies across the U.S., including campuses in Puerto Rico and Hawaii, with resources and opportunities to help graduates maintain a path of success beyond graduation.

Many of the students aged 16-18 have dropped out of high school. The program uses a military-style, supportive environment to help them complete their GED or catch up with their studies to return to school.

Schwartz is working to create more pathways for students in the program to benefit by continuing their education at UDC through Workforce Development and Lifelong Learning, Community College or the undergraduate level.

“There’s so much lost potential among the young people in our city, and they deserve so much more.” Schwartz said. “As mentors and advisors, we can give them a second chance at education, structure and caring so they can become leaders in their communities and role models within their families.”

Prior to his current work with the National Guard Youth Foundation, Schwartz served as the Commanding General of the District of Columbia National Guard until January 2017 serving through both terms under President Obama.

During Schwartz’s tenure as the Commanding General, he managed the mobilization and deployment of the soldiers and airmen of the D.C. National Guard to support the Global War on Terror both at home and abroad.

He fostered cooperation with local elected officials to facilitate collaborative efforts in planning military assistance to civil authorities as well as identifying force structure and fiscal resources available to support the District of Columbia and federal authorities during local and national emergencies.

He was also instrumental in providing community service to D.C. residents. He established a Youth Challenge Academy at Oak Hill, Md., for high school dropouts in D.C. to give them a second chance to become productive D.C. residents.

Prior to this appointment, Schwartz was assigned as a civilian to the Department of  Defense as a Defense Intelligence Senior Executive. He held numerous leadership positions in the intelligence community culminating as the Director of the National Security Incident Response Center at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland. He provided real-time indications and warnings of all cyber incidents that may affect the United States National Security Information Systems.

Schwartz served as the Chairman of the Personnel Committee of the Adjutants General Association of the United States, Chairman of the Army Reserve Forces Policy Committee advising the Secretary of the Army on policies affecting the total army, a member of the Board of Visitors for the United States Military Academy at West Point and a member of the Board of Directors of the National Guard Association of the United States. In addition to being on UDC’s Board of Trustees, he is currently Chairman of the Seafarers Foundation of Annapolis.

Originally from Guyana, South America, at the age of 20, he came to the U.S. where his brother and sister were attending Howard University. He was motivated by the prospect of a better education and a thirst for learning about technology.

Schwartz initially began his academic career at TESST, a technical college with a campus in Hyattsville, Md. His days were spent in class, and at night, he worked the switchboard at the Crestwood on 16th Street NW.  An apartment resident, Dr. Gene Emmanuel, took an interest in him and suggested he apply to Federal City College (FCC) where Emmanuel was an instructor.

In 1974, as a newly minted electrical technologist, Schwartz enrolled in FCC and at the same time began working as a television repairman. He coordinated his service calls with his class schedule, determined to succeed at both.

Along with that drive came a commitment to military service.  In 1976, Schwartz took a brief leave of absence from school and work to enlist in the District of Columbia Army National Guard enduring the rigors of basic training as a man in his mid-20s while most recruits were closer to 19 and 20 years old.

Federal City College became part of the newly created University of the District of Columbia, and he returned at the start of the 1977 fall semester. Two years later, Schwartz was promoted to Second Lieutenant, and in 1980, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from UDC.

During his last semester, Schwartz studied under two instructors who worked at the National Security Agency. Impressed by his ambition and academic performance, they encouraged him to apply to the Agency.

Schwartz began as a GS-7, and within 18 months moved from an engineer to the project leader on a secure communications system.

“The University of the District of Columbia prepared me for my engineering career,” he said. “The Army prepared me to be a leader in society. My education, the clearances and my work ethic leveraged each other and gave me the insight to ask the right questions and the confidence to do so.”

A believer in lifelong learning, Schwartz earned a Master of Arts in Business Management from Central Michigan University and a Master of Science in National Security Strategy from the National Defense University. He also attended the Department of Defense Senior Executive Leadership Program, the National War College, the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and National Defense University’s CAPSTONE General and Flag Officer Leadership program.

General Schwartz has been married since 1977 and has three adult children.