 Perkins was born in Goffstown, New Hampshire on November 12, 1957, and was raised in Keene, New Hampshire; Rochester, New York; and Fairport, New York.Perkins earned his Boy Scouts of America Eagle Scout award in 1974, and graduated from Fairport High School in 1976.He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1980 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant of Armor.