Karl Schneider has 22 years of experience in the United States Army as a Special Forces Officer (Green Beret), and Foreign Area Officer.  Karl has served all over the world from South Korea, Europe, Turkey, Africa, as well as combat in Iraq & Afghanistan implementing United States Foreign Policy at the far reaches of the planet.  From defending the Korean peninsula to teaching United Nations Chapter VI Peace Keeping and Chapter VII Peace Enforcement in Francophone West Africa, Karl’s experience has uniquely positioned him to have firsthand knowledge of the second and third order effects of our foreign policy.

Karl spent 18 months close to the Demilitarized Zone in South Korea as an Infantry Officer and understands the deep division between the two governments and more so the real military threat to the people. He experienced the countries angst when Kim Il Sung died in July of 1994. After entering the Special Forces, Karl worked extensively in West Africa as part of the 3rd Special Forces Group implementing the U.S. African Crisis Response Initiative and Operation Focus Relief to train African military forces in Peace Keeping and Peace Enforcement Operations.  Karl had just left the Ivory Coast in 1999 when they experienced their first military coup since winning independence back in 1960.  Later, Karl attended the Turkish Army War College and enjoyed the language and cultural immersion in Istanbul Turkey.  He later served in the NATO Headquarters there at a very interesting time when Turkey suffered multiple terrorist attacks and the tumultuous transition in government leadership to the now current President of Turkey, Reccip Tayyip Erdogan.  He then served in the 10th Special Forces Group here in Colorado Springs and deployed his unit to Diyala Province, Iraq.  The challenges there were many to include: Sunni/Shia/Kurd conflict, tribal conflict, Iranian Quds Force operatives/operations, not to mention ‘simple’ security establishment. Later, while working in the Pentagon, he focused on strategic plans and operations while finishing his Master of Arts in International Relations and the coveted Seminar XXI MIT Fellowship. While at the Pentagon, he traveled extensively in support of these strategic efforts to Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Karl is a community leader and small business owner. Currently, Karl serves as the Board Secretary on the Colorado Springs World Affairs Council as well as on the Board of Directors of the CIVA Charter High School in District 11. He also serves in multiple capacities in the El Paso County Republican party and is a former candidate for State House District 15.