This UT Arlington grad from Fort Worth is set to become first Black four-star Marine general
A graduate of Fort Worth Western Hills High School and UT Arlington is set to become the first Black four-star general in the U.S. Marine Corps, pending Senate confirmation.
Lt. Gen. Michael Langley, a native of Shreveport, Louisiana, was nominated in June to lead the U.S. Africa Command, a position that would put him in charge of all U.S. military forces in Africa and make him eligible for his fourth star.
Langley appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday morning to answer questions.
The U.S. Marine Corps was founded on Nov. 10, 1775. In the following nearly 247 years, there have been 73 four-star generals, the highest rank possible.
Langley graduated from UTA in 1985 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He was a four-year track letterman and graduate assistant coach.
His former roommate, Bill Boyd, said he’s not surprised by how far Langley has gone.
“He was a very disciplined college student,” Boyd said. “Where a lot of us might sleep in, Mike never slept in. [He was] driven. He was a very good teammate.”
Boyd also remembers Langley’s sense of humor. For entertainment the two would watch “Love Connection,” a 1980s television dating game show.
“Mike and I watched that show and we laughed and we’d guess,” Boyd said. “We’d order Domino’s pizza. It was a typical 1980s type evening, you know. We didn’t have the internet or Facebook or any of the dating apps so we were just hanging out at Maverick Village at UTA.”
