Excelsior University dedicated the Lt. Gen. Arthur J. Gregg University Center and awarded him the President's Medal Wednesday.
The honor comes just weeks after Gregg’s name, along with Col. Charity Adams, was removed from the renamed Fort Lee, which is the home of Army logistics near Petersburg.
“Personally, I was disappointed. I thought that it was a wonderful tribute to a man who truly had an incredible impact on the Armed Services,” David Schejbal, president of Excelsior University.
Adams’ and Gregg's names were removed from Fort Lee in June, as part of a Trump Administration effort to restore the names of nine Army bases originally named for Confederate generals - three of the bases are in Virginia. Fort Lee is now named after Fitz Lee, a Black soldier who won the Medal of Honor after the Spanish-American War.
Gregg had been a trustee at Excelsior University, prior to his death in 2024 at 96 years old. The process of naming the center after him had been in the works prior to the renaming, Schejbal said.
“It was really to honor one of our founding trustees and someone who gave a tremendous amount of support to the institution, but that renaming of the fort lends additional impetus to us,” he said.
Excelsior University was originally the Regents External Degree Program. Founded in 1971 in Albany, New York, the school was dedicated to non-traditional students, including the wave of returning Vietnam veterans. Gregg commanded a unit in Vietnam and remained focused on serving veteran students throughout his time at Excelsior, Schejbal said.
Gregg graduated from Huntington High School high school in Newport News and entered the Army in 1946. During his 35-year career, he became the first Black three star general in the Army. He was interviewed by WHRO, after the Fort Robert E. Lee was renamed Fort Gregg-Adams in 2023.
“I have always admired the military and I was in Newport News during the war years,” Gregg said. “Many soldiers came to visit our town and I was impressed with their uniform. I was impressed with their conduct, and it gave me an added incentive to one day become a soldier.”
