Best Professional Development Event For Intel Professionals This Year

That's right, the Institute of Intelligence Studies is sponsoring a professional development conference for its alumni, students and faculty this summer from 8-11 July at Mercyhurst University.

And you can register here!

This is not an alumni "weekend", "retreat" or an "escape".  It is not "homecoming".  This is a premiere opportunity to hone your skills as an intelligence professional at the same place where you all got your start -- Mercyhurst.

We are bringing in top notch speakers (many of which are former classmates!) and are going to offer an extraordinary opportunity to network both inside and outside your chosen field (Quick:  How many Mercyhurst intel alums currently work in the banking industry?  In energy?  In almost any field you can name?  You will be surprised at the number!) and across the generations (We have been doing this for 20 years - I know, I find it hard to believe myself!).

If you need more enticement, the faculty will all be here to bring you up to speed on our current research activities (AKA "What we have learned about intel since you've been gone...") and where we are going in the future.  With over 1000 alumni, 100's of research projects, dozens of full and part time faculty, and the opportunities represented by the new building, these are results you will want to know about.

This isn't just about us, though.  We also want to learn from you, too.  Our program is 20 years old this year and it is time to plot our course for the next 20 years.  What are the problems you are having?  What research do you need done to improve your ability to provide actionable intelligence to the decisionmakers you support?  What skills and abilities do the intelligence analysts of tomorrow need today?  Getting your input at this conference is crucial.

If you are a current student or alum you can register here to attend.  I personally look forward to seeing each and every one of you!

Mercyhurst Intel Program Growing Again! New Faculty, New Building! (Shameless Self-promotion)

These are heady times on the shores of Lake Erie!  Within the next six months, we are set to hire at least two new full time faculty members and to break ground on a new building to house (among others) the Intelligence Studies Department and the Center For Intelligence Research Analysis And Training.

As for the faculty, we are currently looking to hire two new full time professors for next year.  For more information about the positions, the Chronicle of Higher Education has the complete details.  For anyone interested in the program, I recommend www.mciis.org, or in the college, I recommend www.mercyhurst.edu.  For those interested in (or nervous about) Erie, I recommend this amazing post.

Those of you who have made the pilgrimage to Mercyhurst know that we are bursting at the seams in our current digs.  The new building will not only give us room to stretch our legs in a state-of-the-art facility but also allow us to more easily interact with the faculty and students of other departments -- an opportunity that I think we all are excited about. 

The latest sketch of the new building is in the picture above.  For those of you familiar with the campus, the building is set to be north and east of the library in the very front of the campus.  The bridge on the third floor (visible in this picture) will connect the new building to the library.  The funding for the basic version of the building, as I understand it, is largely complete.  We are now looking for some generous donors to make it even more awesome...

So, students, parents, alumni and friends of the program, what do you think?  Leave a note in the comments!