Promoted to U.S. Army Brigadier General in January 2004, David Fridovich has served as commander at every level in the Army—platoon, company, battalion, and group. He has commanded counterterrorism forces throughout the world, including assignments in Korea, Hawaii, and the United States. In September 1994, his troops participated in operations in Haiti, successfully restoring the country's popularly-elected president. He has also commanded Special Forces unites in Afghanistan in 2001 and 2002 and was instrumental in leading counterterrorist forces in the Phillipines. In addition to his command positions, Fridovich has served in a variety of staff and support positions, including assistant professor of military sciences at Norwich University.

Knox Magazine: Please describe your Knox experience.
General Fridovich: I went to Knox to be independent and get out on my own. I believe I was just one of two or so students from Florida, so distance was a factor. I always had a dream to play some level of college football, and Knox would help fulfill that dream. In spite of all these reasons, I somehow knew a small college would take me in, and I would be able to finish in spite of myself. So, along the way I met some men and women who would become friends and mentors educating me for life.

KM: How has that experience affected your life?
GF: This will seem trite, but I have used the outcomes of the "Knox Experience" almost everyday of my U.S. Army life. Somehow the value of a classic liberal arts education works—and works exceedingly well—when you have to deal with a multitude of complex issues, emerging ideas, and the broadest base of individuals the world has to offer. Coaches Harley Knosher and Al Reilly (along with the rest of the football team) kept me wanting to come back for yet another season, and Doctor Bob Seibert saw something in me I didn't know existed, a student/scholar. 
My coaches kept me at Knox, and Bob Seibert developed me intellectually at Knox, finally taking a chance by getting me into our beloved Tulane University for a master's degree. I'm convinced this wouldn't have happened any place else.

KM: What do you believe is your most notable achievement?
GF: In 2001, we deployed to the Southern Philippines to assist the government of the Philippines with an on-going struggle. In the course of deploying other forces there, I (with the help of my staff) developed a model, now known as the Basilan model (named for the island we applied it to). The Basilan model is becoming recognized as a leading method to indirectly affect the conditions that permit terrorism and terrorists to develop.   The model itself uses existing military structures within the region and adds the synergy of civil action projects with information campaigns, directing all efforts to make the population and government closer and more reliant on one another. Four years after the majority of all forces left Basilan Island, it remains terrorist-free and the populace's lives have returned to a degree of normalcy they haven't had in 20+ years.

KM: What will you do to celebrate your Alumni Achievement Award?
GF: Make sure I visit Harley Knosher and Bob Seibert while in town to thank them both for their belief in me.

KM: What words of advice would you offer to current Knox students? 
GF: Realize as you go through your own Knox experience the applicable of value of what you are learning. Be ready to apply and share it with those around you in your next spheres of influence, because, right now, you may not fully realize the value of the gift you've been given. Therefore, it's only fitting to think you have a serious responsibility to accomplish something worthwhile with it. 

Read General Fridovich's Alumni Achievement Award Citation.