Associate Professor, Tom Heaney

Associate Professor, Tom Heaney, Colonel, U.S. Army (Ret.) served with distinction for over 30 years as an infantry officer and operational planner. He commanded at both the O-5 (battalion) and O-6 (brigade) levels and was the deputy commander for U.S. Army South and U.S. Army Recruiting Command. He was an operations officer who led planning from the battalion through Corps levels. A graduate of the U.S. Army Command & General Staff College and the U.S. Naval War College, Colonel Heaney has held key planning billets and led large-scale planning efforts at the division, corps, service, and combatant command levels. His operational planning experience included service as the Chief of Exercise, Plans and Training (G3X), XVIII Airborne Corps and as the Deputy Commander, Operations for U.S. Army South.

Following his final assignment as the Deputy Commander (West) for U.S. Army Recruiting Command, Colonel Heaney was assigned as a Military Professor at the U.S. Naval War College for his final assignment. He taught in the Joint Military Operations Department and was the Senior U.S. Army Advisor to the President, USNWC. Colonel Heaney taught with distinction in the JMO department for three years.

Upon retirement, Heaney was hired as an Operations Specialist (contractor) by the College of Maritime Operational Warfare (CMOW). He served on the Assist and Assess Team for over two years working directly with the Fleet Operational Headquarters developing and honing their operational planning capabilities. In 2014 Heaney was instrumental in developing the U.S. Navy’s Maritime Operational Planners Course which he then taught for a decade. Overall he has 13 years of experience teaching planning as a military and civilian professor. For his exceptional service Heaney received the Superior Civilian Service Award in 2024.