Adams State University is proud to host Tom Bruscino, Ph.D., ’99, a former football star and currently professor in the Department of Military Strategy, Planning, and Operations at the U. S. Army War College in Carlisle Barracks, Penn. His talk begins at 12 p.m., Friday, Sept. 27, in McDaniel Hall 101.
Targeting current students, but also the general public, Dr. Bruscino’s presentation focuses on enlarging [a student’s] perspective on what is available in the world for Adams State graduates. He will answer questions about history, graduate school, government service, professional military education, current projects, and other topics of interest. He is eager to hear what the current crop of students are studying and interested in pursuing.
After earning his Ph.D. from Ohio University in 2005, Dr. Bruscino began teaching at United States Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Riley, Kansas, before assuming his duties at Carlisle Barracks in 2017. A specialized institution, “The Army War College is the last major educational step in an officer’s career,” he said. “We educate senior leaders in all of the services, multiple civilian agencies, and international officers in national security and decision making, strategic leadership, military strategy and campaigning, and defense management, so they can go out and lead the armed forces in war and peace.”
He published his first book, A Nation Forged in War: How World War II Taught Americans to Get Along, with the University of Tennessee Press in 2010, and Oxford University Press will soon publish his latest work, The Meuse Argonne Offensive and the Birth of the American Century.
A football standout at Highlands Ranch High School, he was not widely recruited. His high school coach, Marty Heaton,’81 recommended him to Coach Jeff Geiser, Ph.D., at Adams State. Dr. Bruscino played linebacker for Geiser and earned a reputation for tenacity and making big plays. He calls, Coach Geiser a lifelong mentor and “a great, inspirational, smart coach who truly cares about people.”
Although Dr. Bruscino came to Adams State to play football, he planned to become a high school social studies teacher and coach. He found his real passion in academic study. “The general education courses introduced me to a broad variety of subjects taught by passionate professors. I had incredible mentors in my major area, led by Drs. McDaniel and Crowther, which led to me getting the McDaniel-Gallagher Scholarship.” By the end of his junior year, Dr. Bruscino had decided to pursue a doctorate in history.
Neither of his parents attended college but Adams State provided a supportive academic and athletic environment that launched him on his career path. He met his wife, Terrie, ’99, at Adams State, and they are proud parents of three children. When his teammates decided to hold a reunion during the 2024 homecoming weekend, Bruscino was determined to attend and is giving this talk “to share my ongoing love for Adams State.”
