Last week our speaker was fellow Rotarian and retired Colonel (USAF), Wiley Barnes, now Executive Director, CSU Office of Defense Engagement (ODE). This is a brand-new office and Wiley is its first director. CSU’s land grant pedigree and ethos will now have an opportunity to positively impact the national security sector. Its first director comes with impressive credentials - 25 years of experience as an intelligence officer and military strategist - “a past of war planning and operations and a future of ensuring peace”.
The talk was in 3 parts - our speaker’s personal story, a description of the Office (with its mission statement) and a peek at ODE success stories (2023).
Wiley started with “show and tell”, holding up a piece of a destroyed B-1 bomber that was piloted by a friend who barely escaped death after a combat mission, when his aircraft experienced a major mechanical failure while taxiing back to the aircraft parking area. The message was “even the most mundane activities can be extremely dangerous for our military service members.”
Personal story
Wiley’s aspirations started early - at age 4 he could be seen wearing an Air Force T shirt (we saw the picture). By 8 he declared he wanted to be in the Air Force. He was born in Kansas and grew up in a small town in TN (McEwen). He received a BA in political science and 3 master’s degrees (Org Mgmt., HR Development and finally, Military Strategy). In the USAF he moved 15 times in 25 years, living in several states as well as the Middle East and Germany. (We learned in the Q&A that supporting his his son was the driving force in moving to CO as his son finished high school, tired of DC, and planned to go to CO.)
ODE history
The ODE was envisioned by Hank Gardner, CSU Associate VP (retired). The first activity of the office was a training rotation for Special Forces Medics and, after startup funding, grew into the current office in 2022.
Who are our greatest threats? The National Security Strategy identifies the PRC (China) as number 1 (especially in stolen US data). Russia, America’s most dangerous threat, is a close second. Wiley’s next slide highlighted the many Air Force, Space Force and aerospace resources already in Colorado. The vision of ODE is to establish itself as an indispensable partner in research, education, and service in the National Security community. CSU’s growth opportunities in the national security sector include: Aerospace, Cybersecurity, Disease, and Climate Resilience. Due Colorado’s unique aerospace infrastructure (both government and industry), the increasing risk of wildfires in Colorado poses a national security risk.
ODE’s success stories
Funding is key to any enterprise, especially for universities.
- ODE has brokered an inter-governmental support agreement ($15M) between a unique CSU center for the environmental management of military lands and the National Guard Bureau.
- The Department of Homeland Security is partnered with CSU coauthoring a national guide (DHS “Connected Communities Toolkit “) to be published Fall 2023.
- CSU and the Air Force Academy have created a research and education partnership agreement between the 2 campuses, expected to be final Fall 2023.
- Finally, it is no surprise that CSU canine research would be of value to the military. CSU has received a $450K+ grant from the Defense health Agency for canine research.
We enjoyed hearing about this new development at “our” university and rejoice that a Rotarian is in charge. Perhaps a progress report would be welcome in a few years.
Only time for 2 questions.
The first was an inquiry about why Wiley chose Ft Collins after completion of his first career - see above (it’s often about the kids).
Lloyd commented on the importance of mental health on physical health and its importance in defense readiness. Our speaker recognized the potential for research at CSU in mental health and the challenge it presents to the DoD (especially in recruiting).