Auburn University partners with Intelligence and Security Academy to train public officials in data security

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Training offered by the Center for Governmental Services at Auburn University will provide public officials in Alabama and throughout the country with the resources needed to secure data and protect the interests of community governments and businesses.

Center director Don-Terry Veal said governments and businesses have operated under a heightened awareness of intelligence and security since the events of 9/11, and the need to secure data and information and protect resources is essential for the urban and rural communities within Alabama and across the United States.

Through the center, an agency of University Outreach, Auburn University recognized this need and collaborated with the Intelligence and Security Academy to provide current or upcoming managers, policy makers, law enforcement officers, military personnel and internet technology professionals with the proper tools to deal with security and intelligence issues and new threats.

“This type of information should not be used to protect only Washington, D.C., and the larger metropolitan areas, but it also has application to the more rural communities across the country,” said Veal.

Lt. Gen. Ron Burgess, senior counsel for national security programs, cyber programs and military affairs at Auburn, will serve as a consultant to the partnership. A 38-year U.S. Army veteran, Burgess spent much of his career in the upper levels of military intelligence and security.

“This joint effort will not only serve to equip communities and municipalities with the critical skill sets and situational awareness necessary to deal with myriad threats, but it will also provide opportunities for valuable training that will foster workforce development in our region’s growing knowledge-based economy,” he said. “This partnership is a good fit for both sides and aligns well with the education and outreach aspects of our mission here at Auburn University.

“I think anything we can do in this current threat environment to equip our leaders, law enforcement personnel and local citizenry with the requisite tools, knowledge and understanding is a good thing and is part of the reason we exist as an institution.”

Auburn University and the Intelligence and Security Academy jointly bring decades of senior executive experience in intelligence, national security and policy analysis that can apply to individual organizations and processes.

The first two courses, Introduction to U.S. Intelligence and Intelligence for Policy Makers, will be offered Oct. 22-23 at Auburn and taught by Mark Lowenthal, president of the Intelligence and Security Academy. Lowenthal has served as assistant director of Central Intelligence for Analysis and Production; vice chairman for evaluation, National Intelligence Council; deputy assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence; and staff director, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

For those interested in a career in intelligence and security, a professional certification also is available. Specific information about the courses, costs and registration is available online athttp://www.auburn.edu/outreach/cgs/intelligence/index.php or by calling Patrick Rose at (334) 844-1914. For more information about the Center for Governmental Services, go tohttp://www.auburn.edu/outreach/cgs/. For more information about the Intelligence and Security Academy, go to http://www.theintelligenceacademy.net/.

(Contributed by Maria Tamblyn.)

Auburn University is a nationally ranked land grant institution recognized for its commitment to world-class scholarship, interdisciplinary research with an elite, top-tier Carnegie R1 classification, life-changing outreach with Carnegie’s Community Engagement designation and an undergraduate education experience second to none. Auburn is home to more than 30,000 students, and its faculty and research partners collaborate to develop and deliver meaningful scholarship, science and technology-based advancements that meet pressing regional, national and global needs. Auburn’s commitment to active student engagement, professional success and public/private partnership drives a growing reputation for outreach and extension that delivers broad economic, health and societal impact.