Craig Mullaney Craig M . Mullaney ( born c . 1978 ) is a United States Army veteran and the author of " The Unforgiving Minute : A Soldier ’ s Education " ( Penguin Press ) . He was Senior Vice President of Content , Strategy and Operations at Ustream from 2011 to 2013 . He also served as Senior Policy Advisor working for the United States Agency for International Development . Early life , education and family . Raised in a blue - collar family in Rhode Island , Mullaney was the Bishop Hendricken High School valedictorian and was selected for nomination to the U . S . Military Academy in 1996 . While a cadet , Mullaney double - majored in French and History , served as the cadet brigade operations officer in his senior year , and completed over 400 jumps as a nationally ranked member of West Point ' s sport - parachute team . He graduated second in the West Point Class of 2000 . Mullaney attended Lincoln College at the University of Oxford from 2000 to 2002 as a Rhodes Scholar . He earned a Master of Science degree in Economic and Diplomatic History and a Master of Studies degree in Historical Research . During this time he traveled to over thirty countries . Mullaney is married to Dr . Meena Seshamani , M . D . , Ph . D . , formerly an otolaryngology resident physician at Johns Hopkins Hospital , a published health economist and currently Deputy Director in the Office of Health Reform in the United States Department of Health and Human Services . They met at Oxford where Dr . Seshamani was a Ph . D . Marshall Scholar and he was a Rhodes Scholar . Military career . Prior to arriving at Oxford , Mullaney completed Ranger School at Fort Benning , Georgia , a grueling nine - week course designed to test small - unit leadership by simulating combat stress through strenuous tactical exercises . When Mullaney returned to the United States in 2002 , he completed additional infantry training and joined the 10th Mountain Division , which had recently returned from Afghanistan . In 2003 , Mullaney served as an infantry officer with the 10th Mountain Division as part of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan , where he led a rifle platoon along the hostile border with Pakistan . His platoon operated along the entire spectrum of combat operations — from humanitarian assistance to full - scale combined arms against al - Qaeda and Taliban forces . Mullaney ' s platoon was the most decorated in Afghanistan during its tour and was commended in person by General Richard Myers , General John Abizaid , and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld . Mullaney was recognized with the Bronze Star , Army Commendation Medal for Valor , and the Combat Infantryman Badge . After his tour in Afghanistan , Mullaney served in the 3rd United States Infantry Regiment ( The Old Guard ) , in Arlington , Virginia . At this elite ceremonial unit , he planned portions of the 2005 Presidential Inauguration , marched in reviews for foreign dignitaries , and managed a team of Pentagon - funded software engineers developing management software for small units in the Army . In the summer of 2005 , Mullaney joined the faculty of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis , Maryland , as a history professor and Army Exchange Officer . He designed and taught an undergraduate course on the history of the U . S . Navy and American foreign policy . Mullaney left the Army in the summer of 2008 upon completion of his tour at the Naval Academy . Public service . Mullaney was on the national security staff of Barack Obama ' s presidential campaign , and served as the Chief of Staff of the United States Department of Defense Transition Team under co - chairs Michele Flournoy and Dr . John P . White . He worked as the Principal Director for Afghanistan , Pakistan , and Central Asia for the Department of Defense from May 2009 to April 2010 . In April 2010 , he was appointed as a senior advisor on Afghanistan and Pakistan issues to the United States Agency for International Development . Author . Mullaney wrote " The Unforgiving Minute : A Soldier ’ s Education " , an autobiographical look at preparing for the responsibility of leading men in combat and the hard - won lessons of that experience . In advance of its publication on February 19 , 2009 , it received critical praise from an array of leading political and military figures . Since publication it has received favorable reviews from publications including " The New York Times " . " Times " reviewer Janet Maslin noted the " searing detail " of the Afghanistan combat description , and concluded that the memoir ' s " impact " comes from its account of " the inner journey of a man who is at first eager to learn as much as he can from service and scholarship . Later on he learns from his mistakes . "