He is the Karl Lowenstein Distinguished Visiting Lecturer in the Political Science Department at Amherst College, where he designed and taught a class on the 20th anniversary of 9/11, "Understanding 9/11".

Rieckhoff attended James I. O'Neill High School in Highland Falls, New York, and graduated from Amherst College in 1998 with a BA in political science.

[citation needed] The unit was attached to 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division and spent almost a year conducting combat operations in Baghdad, Iraq.

[4] On February 13, 2014, IAVA led the creation, passage and signing into law of the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for America's Veterans (SAV) Act.

[13][additional citation(s) needed] [14] Rieckhoff has testified before Congress on issues facing the veterans community and writes regularly for national websites and publications.

In August 2011, Rieckhoff and four other IAVA members appeared on the cover of Time magazine for a feature about Iraq and Afghanistan veterans being leaders of the "New Greatest Generation".

[18] Rieckhoff has produced four documentary films (Warrior Champions, Reserved to Fight, Jerabek and When I Came Home) and acted in Green Zone starring Matt Damon.

[20] A member of the American think tank Council on Foreign Relations, Rieckhoff is an advocate for Iraqi and Afghan refugees and interpreters and an advisory board member of The List Project, "a non-profit operating in the U.S., founded with the belief that the United States Government has a clear and urgent moral obligation to resettle to safety Iraqis who are imperiled due to their affiliation with the United States of America.

[24] In 2013, Rieckhoff was named to "The Verge 50" list of "people that changed our lives" alongside leaders like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Marissa Mayer.