Military Service Award. This award is given to a GMC Corps of Cadets alumnus who has rendered unusual and conspicuous service, heroic effort and action or service to their city, state or nation while bringing honor to GMC and the Corps of Cadets.
COL Paul Scott Drury (Ret) stands above the crowd not only in word but in action as well. This GMC alumnus has dedicated his life to serving our country, and over the years has excelled as a proven leader in a variety of different positions. Throughout his military career, he has consistently exemplified the GMC ideals of “Duty, Honor, Country.”
COL Drury enlisted in the Army Reserve when he was 17 years old. He began his GMC journey in 1986 as a member of the Corps of Cadets. While a Cadet, he served as Cadet Company Commander. He graduated from GMC and was commissioned in 1988. Over the next three years, he served at GMC as the Deputy Commandant until he departed for military service.
COL Drury holds a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from the State University of New York. COL Drury also went on to earn a Master of Science in Computer Resource Information Management from Webster University, a Master of Arts in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Air Force War College, and a Master of Science in Strategic Intelligence from the National Intelligence University, with a focus on Adversarial Denial and Deception analysis and media manipulation methodologies and response.
COL Drury is an executive-level leader with more than 33 years of national security and military intelligence experience. He is also a recognized expert in foreign policy, strategic intelligence, operational planning, and the coordination with, and integration of, community-based military reserve forces of more than 200,000 soldiers and civilians. He served in Special Operations, Information Operations, Psychological Operations, as a Legislative Liaison, and was a credentialed Counterintelligence Special Agent.
COL Drury has held multiple senior positions supporting United States National Security. As the Director for Legislative Affairs for Defense and Intelligence operations at the White House for the National Security Council, he was recognized for his geo-political expertise in addressing issues with North Korea, China, and Russia. These issues included bilateral negotiations on a nation-state nuclear program, state-influence technology vendors, and incident attribution of cyber operations concerning the 2016 Presidential Election. COL Drury also led operational and planning efforts among multiple USG agencies in crisis response, science and technology initiatives, and declassification coordination.
COL Drury has served in Afghanistan, Iraq, Bosnia, Haiti, and multiple other locations globally.
After retiring as a Colonel from the United States Army in 2018, COL Drury has led government affairs, business development and strategic partnership efforts for cutting edge technology companies specializing in artificial intelligence, blockchain, decentralized finance, and cryptocurrency.
COL Drury is an active supporter of various Veterans organizations and activities. He also is involved in animal rescue activities. COL Drury is a dedicated alumnus of the GMC Corps of Cadets and gives of his time and talent by providing mentorship opportunities for GMC Cadets.
COL Drury lives in Virginia with his wife, Dr. Sherry Schnake. Together they have three daughters, Fia, Anna, and Allie, and one son, Izaak.
