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We are proud to announce that DSCU / ISG’s Resident Advising Program (Ministry of Defense Advisors) in Kyiv, Ukraine has been honored with the 2023 Secretary of Defense Maintenance Award for Sustainment Training, Advice, and Assistance of Foreign Military Forces, Ministerial category.

At the Annual Secretary of Defense Maintenance Awards ceremony in San Diego, Mr. Erik Stohlmann, ISG Regional Advising Principal for Europe, represented the Institute’s winners, accepting the award presented by Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment, the Honorable Christopher Lowman.

Welcome the New Year with a new issue Institute’s quarterly newsletter – The ISG Heron – highlighting our work in Security Cooperation and Institutional Capacity Building as well as the people who contribute to this important mission.

In this issue, ISG:

• Celebrates ISG’s Fourth Secretary of Defense Maintenance Award win
• Spotlights the DSCU Presidential Visit to ISG & DRMI
• Reminisces about ISG’s Successful On-Site in Monterey
• Welcomes five new, impressive Regional Advising and Functional Leads
• Delves into how the Royal Jordanian Navy is Securing and Protecting its Maritime Borders
• Highlights ISG’s Support for 2023 Exercise Keris Aman

DSCU’s Institute for Security Governance recently concluded the resident course: EXECUTIVE PROGRAM IN DEFENSE DECISION MAKING in Monterey, California. The goal of this course is to empower senior leaders with key knowledge and skills to be effective decision-makers, become agents of change, and to transform their institutions to address ever-evolving national security challenges.

On December 13-14, a delegation comprising DSCA Deputy Director Mr. Michael Miller, DSCA Chief of Staff Mr. Steven Derscheid, DSCU President Dr. Celeste Gventer, and DSCU Vice President Dr. Jason Fritz met with the leaders and staff of DSCA outstations, the Institute for Security Governance, and the Defense Resources Management Institute on Naval Support Activity Monterey.

During their visit, the DSCA & DSCU delegation engaged in a series of impactful activities. They participated virtually in the DSCA end-of-year Town Hall, which was followed by an in-person Q&A session on issues of import to ISG and DRMI personnel. Additionally, they visited both DRMI’s International Defense Management course and ISG’s Executive Program in Defense Decision-Making course, gaining valuable insights into high-caliber education and professional development missions of both components.

The U.S. Institute for Security Governance (ISG) made its inaugural visit to Sri Lanka in February 2020, just before the onset of the global pandemic. During this visit, ISG (part of Defense Security Cooperation University) identified the potential for an Institutional Capacity Building (ICB) project in collaboration with the newly established Sri Lankan National Defense College. This project, which ISG was able to support virtually during the COVID-19 period, provided ISG and Sri Lankan counterparts with an opportunity to build trust and rapport, despite pandemic limitations on in-person interaction. ISG also gained a greater appreciation for Sri Lankan defense priorities and strategic decision-making culture – organizational insights that would position ISG to be a more thoughtful and effective partner when travel restrictions were lifted in late 2021.

Congratulations to the latest cohort of International Defense Acquisition Resource Management (IDARM) “Principles of Defense Acquisition and Contract Management” graduates. This particular resident course was conducted with Spanish simultaneous interpretation and tailored to focus on specific challenges and opportunities within the Latin American context at DSCU’s Institute for Security Governance in beautiful Monterey, California.

The forthcoming iteration of the resident course is slated to take place from November 11 to November 22, 2024.