“IWP will gear you towards a successful career-building relationship with the intelligence community, and the academic rigor from IWP will ensure your success in the IC.”
-Gregory Hamilton, IWP M.A. candidate
A retired Army intelligence officer who is currently serving as an intelligence collection manager for U.S. Fleet Cyber Command, Greg Hamilton chose IWP after he was referred by General Michael Hayden, former Director of the CIA. He is now enrolled in IWP’s Master of Arts in Statecraft and National Security Affairs program with aspirations of joining the National Security Council.
Greg originally became interested in intelligence because both of his parents were career intelligence civilians who worked closely with the military. “I saw them in and out of NSA [National Security Agency] headquarters growing up,” said Greg. One day, he saw military photos in the halls of the NSA and learned that it was the Directors’ hallway. Each Director was in military uniform. At that point, Greg decided to join the military.
Greg went on to serve for 24 years as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Army. He was stationed in Korea, Germany, and the U.S. consulate in Saudi Arabia. He also spent time in Kentucky, North Carolina, Virginia, and at Fort Meade, where he served on and off from 2014-2021.
During this time, Greg had the chance to brief senior NSA/U.S. Cyber Command leadership on a weekly basis. His recommendations were taken to the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the national security advisors at the White House, ultimately so that the President could make a decision. After certain White House meetings, Greg would wait for feedback from Avril Haines, Director of National Intelligence, who would come by his office, along with Ron Moultrie, Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence & Security and a friend of Greg’s parents.
Greg retired from the military last year.
During his time in the military, he was working hard – 16-18 hour days, 7 days a week. Yet, at the recommendation of General Hayden, he found the time to journey from Fort Meade to D.C. to attend an IWP open house before Covid hit. “The open house was fantastic,” remembered Greg. “I fell in love with the school.”
After reviewing IWP’s programs, Greg found that this curriculum would really set students up for success in the intelligence community. For instance, he was pleased to see that IWP challenged students to read about active measures – something that he sees almost every day in the classified materials in his professional work.
Greg also chose IWP because of its relationships with the intelligence community. He reflected, “I really think that relationships are basically half the battle within D.C. itself. I spent a lot of time walking the corridors of the Pentagon, or going down to Langley for different briefings, or visiting ODNI, the NCTC, Bolling Air Force Base, and a lot of times, it was all about who you knew, or who referred you. IWP helps in that relationship building.”
Greg finally had the opportunity to start classes at IWP in Spring 2022. He was serving as a defense contractor for NSA and was working more reasonable hours.
Most recently, Greg became a government civilian employee with the U.S. Navy Fleet Cyber Command, where he serves as an intelligence collection manager. In this capacity, he serves as the senior advisor to the commander of Fleet Cyber Command on collection and production of intelligence requirements that support planning, target development, operational planning, collection strategies, and collection support for the IC.
Fleet Cyber Command is broken up into divisions, and Greg has his own division now. He can call upon all 17 agencies in the Intelligence Community to ensure that the collection requirements are met.
Greg has just completed his first semester at IWP, in which he took many of IWP’s core curriculum classes, including International Relations with Dr. John Lenczowski and Dr. Jim Robbins, Economics with Dr. Anne Bradley, Western Moral and Political Thought with Dr. Tim McCranor, and Geography and Strategy with Dr. Marek Jan Chodakiewicz.
During his first semester, he especially enjoyed his International Relations course. “The strategy and moral thought that Dr. Lenczowski and Dr. Robbins teach are very valuable. I have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and shook hands with some of the 4-star generals, all while wondering, where is our strategy? IWP covers this integrated statecraft and policy. During my time in the military, I saw how all the arts of statecraft should be working, and IWP captures all that and delivers it to the student.”