Dakota Wood served as a Marine for 20 years and participated in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Wood has more than 40 years of experience in defense policy and across the private sector, military contracting, and think tanks, including the Heritage Foundation. Wood is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Naval War College, and the School of Advanced Warfighting at Quantico.