Academy shines light on intelligence field

The University of North Georgia (UNG) will provide high school students with a firsthand look at the field of intelligence this summer.

Running July 17-21, the National Intelligence Summer Academy (NISA) promises 50 rising sophomores, juniors, or seniors an in-depth look at intelligence careers. It is funded through UNG's Institute for Leadership and Strategic Studies (ILSS). 

Dr. Edward Mienie, professor and executive director of the strategic and security studies bachelor's degree program and partnerships, together with ILSS, created the academy, which is believed to be the first of its kind in the nation.  

"We are looking forward to building on the huge success of NISA's 2022 inaugural year. This year we will continue to provide students with a context for understanding the important role that intelligence has played in our nation's history and continues to play today and provide foundational knowledge of intelligence, setting the stage for possible careers in the field," Mienie said. 

He brings more than 20 years of experience working in international relations and business, media relations and coalition building. He served four years in the South African National Defense Force, where he was deployed to the Angolan War in the 1980s and was awarded a Pro Patria medal in 2019 for his service.

As the multifaceted threats to our national security interests become more intense and sophisticated, it is important to introduce young students to the critical role the intelligence community has in mitigating those threats.

Dr. Edward Mienie

UNG professor and executive director of strategic and security studies

NISA introduces students to high-profile speakers including retired, decorated FBI agent Dell Spry and former KGB agent Jack Barsky, who is reputed to be the longest-serving undercover foreign intelligence agent. Barsky operated in the U.S. for 10 years before he came out of the shadows. Additional speakers for this year will be a senior retired CIA agent who was the head of the CIA operations for Africa, and a second agent whose expertise was the Far East, as well as representation from the NSA.

The academy concludes with a motor coach trip to the Dahlonega Campus, where attendees will have class, tour the campus, eat lunch, and receive information about UNG's academic programs and its Corps of Cadets.

"As the multifaceted threats to our national security interests become more intense and sophisticated, it is important to introduce young students to the critical role the intelligence community has in mitigating those threats," Mienie said. "NISA's mission is to pique the interests of young students by introducing national intelligence as a possible career path and to the fulfilling and rewarding nature of such a career. In fact, it should be more than a career; it ought to be a calling."

Participants must apply and priority is given to students with a GPA of 3.5 or higher and those students who have studied a strategic language (Arabic, Farsi, Russian, Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, or Korean). The $149 fee per participant helps defray expenses of meals, course materials and the motor coach.