Straight From My Heart : David Mason (Co2017) - the US Army

(In these segments, the idea was to bring forth the uniqueness in our class of 2017. Every individual in our class is special, has something unique in him or her to share, something to teach the world and something that we can always look up to and learn from each other.I am grateful to David to be the first person to share his story in this league.)
 

I am David Mason and this is my story. I grew up in Yukon Oklahoma where I went to elementary and middle school. I moved to Perry Oklahoma in the beginning of my freshman year of high school. I started wrestling at a young age and eventually became a two time high school state champion for Perry, Oklahoma. In high school I excelled in academics and athletics, and was recruited by the United States Military Academy at West Point to wrestle. I attend the prestigious school and majored in systems engineering. Additionally, I was a four year letter-man in wrestling.

           Upon graduation I commissioned as an Army second lieutenant in the air defense artillery. I went to the Basic Officer Leadership Course in Fort Sill Oklahoma, and graduated at the top of my class. Immediately following that I reported to Fort Hood, Texas to become a platoon leader. While a platoon leader, I participated in a mission on the Arizona and Mexican border interdicting drug cartel’s smuggling efforts. My platoon and I was in charge of guarding a 250 square mile land area from Ultralight aircraft carrying drugs. We supported ourselves logistically, which took quite some effort to coordinate. I learned more in the month of this mission than any other time in my career so far. It was a crash course in logistics, leadership, and operations. By the time this mission was over, my platoon was operating an extremely high level.

Next, I became the executive officer of a battery and deployed to Kuwait in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. There we monitored the sky and served as a deterrent for any Tactical Ballistic Missile threat in the region. After that deployment I was promoted to the rank of captain, married my wife, Michelle,and returned to Fort Sill, Oklahoma for the Captain’s Career Course. Once again I graduated in the top of my class, and was selected to move to Fort Campbell and take command of a battery of 120 Soldiers. I am currently the Battery Commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Battery 2-44 Air Defense Artillery Battalion. I would also like to mention that in 2014 my wife and I welcomed Benjamin Mason into this world.  Next, I applied to return to the United States Military Academy as an admissions representative. The process included an interview with multiple senior ranking Colonels, and I was selected out of 500 applicants. This future position allows me to attend a fully funded graduate program of my choice, which is what brings me to the Cox School of Business.

            I selected to pursue an MBA because I wanted to learn to be a better leader and learn new skills to manage organizations. I believe that an MBA gives me the best opportunity to accomplish both of those goals simultaneously.

            

            There are two reasons Cox is the right place for me. First, when I retire from the military I plan on making a home in the Dallas area. The alumni network of Cox is second to none in the region and specifically in the Dallas area. I hope to network within the community for a job later in my career. Secondly, my lovely wife, Michelle, has a multiple family in the area. Being close to family is a rare opportunity for an Army Officer.

             

             I believe that Cox students can learn a lot from me, and I can learn a lot from Cox. First, I have real time leadership examples that I can share with the group. Secondly, I bring another perspective of how organizations accomplish missions. Lastly, I am a very driven to succeed. I hope to further my skills as a leader and learn how organizations outside of the Army work. After Cox, I will return to West Point and work as the admissions representative for enlisted Army Soldiers. I will help Soldiers who aspire to become Army Officers into the Academy. My long term goal is to become a Battalion Commander. This position is highly selective and I hope that an MBA and my experiences help me along my path.

             The political dealings of the United States Army are simple. We go where the elected political leaders of the country tell us to go, and accomplish the mission given to us. On top of that, we are the most trained and most well equipped force in the world. Our job is to support and defend the constitution against all enemies.

             The United States Army ties to India are superb. In my Captain’s Career Course, I went to school with an Indian Major. We would study and learn together on a regular basis. He shared his culture and his insights on the world with the entire class. I would say the mere fact he was able to attend the school shows a positive relationship between our two countries.

(Will look forward to share many more inspirational stories like these. My next guest is Elan Rottanburg from the Republic of South Africa)