Marine Corps leaders outline future-focused training strategy at I/ITSEC 2025

January 9, 2026

 

By Cassidy Mills, Staff Writer

 

Marine Corps leaders discussed how the service is modernizing training and education to keep pace with a rapidly evolving global threat environment at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) on Dec. 3.

 

I/ITSEC is the world’s largest modeling, simulation and training (MS&T) event, held annually the week after Thanksgiving at the Orange County Convention Center. The conference brings together the global MS&T community for a week of demonstrations, discussions and collaboration. Each year, the event draws thousands of MS&T professionals, including senior civilian and military leaders, C-suite industry executives and academic researchers from leading institutions.

 

Moderated by Col. Wynndee Young, program manager for training systems at Marine Corps Systems Command, the Marine Corps General Officer Panel brought together leaders responsible for systems development and education to discuss how the Corps is integrating live, virtual and constructive training for multi-domain operations.

 

Panelists included Brig. Gen. Tamara Campbell, commander of Marine Corps Systems Command; Brig. Gen. Michael Brooks, commanding general of Training Command; and Brig. Gen. Matthew Tracy, commanding general of Education Command and president of Marine Corps University.

 

Throughout the discussion, panelists emphasized that modern Marine training must go beyond traditional methods and focus on adaptability, decision-making and realism. Brooks said the core mission remains unchanged: preparing Marines to win in combat. What has changed, he said, is how that preparation occurs.

 

“We’re constantly balancing time, resources and requirements, but everything comes back to producing entry-level Marines who are ready to join the fleet and continue learning,” Brooks said. “That means modernizing how we teach, not just what we teach.”

 

Training Command now oversees 85 schools across 38 locations, reaching thousands of Marines each year. Brooks said recent reforms have shifted the organization away from legacy instructor-led models toward self-paced learning, more efficient use of instructors’ time and increased integration of virtual training tools.

 

A central theme of the panel was the growing role of live, virtual and constructive (LVC) training, particularly under Project Tripoli, the Marine Corps’ effort to modernize training and education across the force.

 

Brooks pointed to advances in vehicle, weapons and communications training that allow Marines to practice skills repeatedly in virtual environments without the logistical burden of live equipment.

 

“We now have digital environments where Marines can put on goggles and practice programming radios or operating complex systems over and over,” Brooks said. “They gain mastery without the maintenance costs, fuel usage or security hurdles of live systems.”

 

Panelists said these tools are especially effective with younger Marines, who are already comfortable navigating digital interfaces and virtual environments. Campbell added that training considerations must be built into systems from the outset, not treated as an afterthought.

 

“When we buy aircraft, simulators are part of the package,” Campbell said. “We need to be just as deliberate with ground systems and other emerging capabilities, ensuring the training piece is built in from the start.”

 

Tracy outlined how Education Command and Marine Corps University are rethinking professional military education to reflect the realities of joint and all-domain warfare.

 

Marine Corps University reaches about 60,000 students annually through resident and distance education programs. Tracy said the command is pursuing major shifts in curriculum, technology and methodology.

 

Among those changes is the expanded use of artificial intelligence (AI) in education — not to replace human judgment, but to sharpen it and enhance how students analyze and apply information.

 

“AI isn’t going away — it’s already woven into everything we do,” Tracy said. “The challenge is to employ it responsibly, leveraging its strengths to elevate how we learn, think and decide.”

 

Education Command is developing tiered AI education, ranging from basic awareness across the force to advanced applications at graduate-level institutions. Tracy said critical thinking remains essential.

 

War gaming also featured prominently in Tracy’s remarks. He described it as one of the most effective ways to teach real-time decision-making under uncertainty, particularly at classified levels.

 

“War gaming gives people a chance to see problems from multiple angles,” Tracy said. “That shift in perspective often leads to better decisions because it exposes assumptions and highlights options they might otherwise overlook.”

 

Marine Corps University now hosts global, cloud-based war gaming competitions that include Marines, joint partners and allied nations. The effort culminates annually at Modern Day Marine, where top performers compete in a final tournament.

 

The panel also addressed the challenge of adopting new technology quickly while managing risk, limited budgets and ongoing operations, particularly under continuing resolutions.

 

Campbell said the Marine Corps’ smaller budget compared to other services requires leaders to be both deliberate and flexible, carefully prioritizing resources while finding creative ways to achieve training and operational goals without compromising readiness.

 

“We have to understand what problems we’re trying to solve and what speed actually means,” Campbell said. “Sometimes it’s not about moving faster — it’s about moving smarter.”

 

As the session concluded, panelists returned to a consistent message: Training and education must evolve alongside the operational environment without losing focus on the fundamentals of warfighting.

 

“This is about realism,” Brooks said. “It’s about preparing Marines at every level to operate together, adapt quickly, make sound decisions under pressure and succeed — no matter the domain or the challenges they face.”