Clifford L . Stanley Clifford Lee Stanley ( born March 31 , 1947 ) was the United States Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness , having resigned that office in 2011 . Biography . Clifford L . Stanley was educated at South Carolina State University , graduating with a bachelor ' s degree in psychology in 1969 . Upon graduation , Stanley was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps . After completing The Basic School in Quantico , Virginia , he served as a fiscal and supply officer . After redesignation as an infantry officer , he was a platoon commander ; company commander in 3rd Battalion , 8th Marines ; commanding officer of Headquarters Company , 4th Marines ; the Executive Officer of 1st Battalion , 6th Marines ; and then commanding officer of the 1st Marines . Stanley was the first African American to command a United States Marine regiment . In 1977 , Stanley was awarded an M . S . in counseling by Johns Hopkins University . He later attended the Amphibious Warfare School ( 1978 ) ( see Marine Corps University ) , the Naval War College ( 1983 ) , the U . S . Marine Corps Command and Staff College ( 1984 ) ( see Marine Corps University ) , and the National War College ( 1988 ) . In the Marine Corps , Stanley served as a psychology and leadership instructor at the United States Naval Academy ; executive officer of the Marine Corps Institute and parade commander at Marine Barracks , Washington , D . C . ; special assistant and Marine Corps aide for the Assistant Secretary of the Navy ; and as a desk officer in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Pentagon . Other assignments include : depot inspector and commander , Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island ; as one of the White House Fellows , he served as special assistant to the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ; fleet marine officer of the United States Second Fleet , stationed on board the USS " Mount Whitney " ( LCC - 20 ) ; assistant deputy chief of staff for manpower and reserve affairs ( Manpower Plans & Policy ) ; director of public affairs at Headquarters Marine Corps , Washington , D . C . ; commanding general of Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms ; and finally as commanding general of Marine Corps Base Quantico . Stanley retired in 2002 , having achieved the rank of major general . He holds the Legion of Merit , Defense Meritorious Service Medal , Meritorious Service Medal with gold star , Navy Commendation Medal , and Navy Achievement Medal . Stanley attended the University of Pennsylvania , earning an Ed . D . He has also received honorary LL . D . s from Spalding University and his " alma mater " , South Carolina State University . In 2004 , Stanley became president of Scholarship America , where he served until 2009 . He has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the White House Fellowship Association and of the McCormick Educational Foundation . He also served on the Board of Trustees for Spalding University , as the District Chair for the Northern District of the Boy Scouts of America , on the Board of Governors for the Civil War and Underground Railroad Museum of Philadelphia ( now the Civil War Museum of Philadelphia ) , and as the president of the Philadelphia Alumni Chapter of the South Carolina State University Alumni Association . In October 2009 , President Barack Obama nominated Stanley as Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness . After he was confirmed by the U . S . Senate , Stanley was sworn into office on February 16 , 2010 . In November 2009 , a private non - profit organization , Americans for Limited Government , published a " nominee alert " that cited various reasons why it believed Stanley should not have been selected for this position . Press reports in late 2011 indicated the Department of Defense ' s inspector general was investigating Stanley ' s office due to " highly detailed allegations of gross mismanagement and abuse of power . " His resignation was announced 27 October 2011 .