Welcome to The United States Military Academy's 77^th Class of 1971 Student Conference on United States Affairs registration page! Congratulations on being nominated by your academic program to attend. We look forward to welcoming you to West Point. Please review the conference information and theme below before proceeding with the "Register Now" button below.

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SCUSA 77 Conference

Schedule

^{The conference schedule is being finalized and will be posted as details are confirmed. Please check back regularly for updates.}

SCUSA  77 THEME

'Peace Through Strength: Power in the 21st Century’

The theme of SCUSA 77, Peace Through Strength: Power in the 21st Century, seeks to capture the complexities of American power and foreign policy in a time of significant international change and uncertainty. The United States remains the most powerful state in terms of military and economic strength as well as global influence. Yet it seems increasingly clear that other states, from China and Russia to “middle powers”, represent challenges to American dominance that suggest the emergence of a more contested and multipolar world. This tectonic change coincides with often divisive debates within the United States over the core nature, purpose, and application of American power abroad. How should the United States combine military strength, economic resilience, technological innovation, diplomacy, and alliances to maintain peace and deter conflict in an increasingly multipolar world? What precisely are the interests, values, and sources of national power that should shape America’s role in the international arena?

The answer to these questions depends in part on how political leaders align national objectives with the instruments of American power. In what ways should the United States respond to growing constraints on its global and regional influence in a multipolar world? How should military strength, economic resilience, technological innovation, diplomacy, and alliances contribute to maintaining peace and deterring conflict? Should the United States share more responsibility with allies and partners as a means of confronting strategic competitors? Or would a more measured and unilateral approach better support American prosperity and security? These and many other vital questions will be explored through the fifteen roundtables of SCUSA 77 as students debate how the United States can best employ power in pursuit of peace, stability, and its national interests in an increasingly turbulent world.

Roundtables:

1. Trust and Authority: Civil-Military Relations in Strategic Competition

2. Competing Powers: Congress, the Executive, and National Security Decision-Making

3. Navigating New Relationships with Latin America

4. Western Hemisphere Counterterrorism Efforts

5. Liberty vs. Security: Constitutional Tensions in the Modern Era

6. Critical Supply Chain Vulnerabilities

7. Sustaining strength through the All-Volunteer Force

8. Economic Warfare and Sanctions

9. US & Allied Defense Industrial Strategy

10. Engines of Power: Innovation, Adoption, and Strategic Advantage in the 21st Century

11. Security Cooperation as a Tool of Great Power Competition

12. Allied Power in the Indo-Pacific: The Mechanics of Combined Deterrence

13. Governing Digital Power: AI, Cyber, and Global Stability

14. Tools and Limits of American Diplomacy

15. Alliance Power in Europe: Deterrence, Burden-Sharing, and Strategic Credibility

DATE.

SCUSA 77 will take place 21–24 October 2026 at the United States Military Academy, West Point.

The conference will begin on the evening of Wednesday, 21 October, and conclude on Saturday, 24 October. Highlights of the conference include:

• Opening Senior Panel Discussion – Evening of Wednesday, 21 October
• Keynote Address – Evening of Thursday, 22 October
• Four Roundtable Sessions – Morning and afternoon sessions on Thursday, 22 October, and Friday, 23 October
• Closing Plenary Session – Morning of Saturday, 24 October, during which selected delegates will participate in a culminating competition and present recommendations for U.S. foreign policy developed throughout the conference

ATTIRE.

Business casual is appropriate for all conference events and roundtable sessions. Attendees should bring business attire for the Keynote Banquet. Military cadets and midshipmen are encouraged to wear the uniform customarily prescribed by their institution for comparable academic and formal conference events.

REGISTRATION FEE.

In-Person: All registrations include meals and lodging.

· Early Bird: $175 if you register by September 1, 2026

· Full-Price: $275 if you register between September 1 - 30, 2026

All fees directly support the operation of SCUSA.

NOTES. Registration closes on September 30, 2026

TRAVEL.

Student delegates should plan to arrive no later than 1330 on Wednesday, October 21. Transportation to West Point will be provided from LaGuardia Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport, and Croton-Harmon Train Station. Delegates should plan to depart from West Point around 1200 on Saturday, October 24. Please make flight and travel arrangements based on these guidelines.

CONFERENCE QUESTIONS.

If you have any questions about the conference or its logistics, please contact SCUSA@westpoint.edu.

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