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WIU alumnus Captain Brad Carnduff is the director of the Illinois Statewide Terrorism and Intelligence Center (STIC). He spoke on Western's campus via the Homeland Security Research Program in Fall 2012 (see "Fertile Ground: IL ISP Terrorism and Intelligence Center Director Recruits 'Cream of Crop' from Alma Mater").
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FBI Terrorism Task Force Reps to Speak at Homeland Security Research Lecture Series Feb. 7

February 6, 2013

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MACOMB, IL – As part of the activities in the Western Illinois University Homeland Research Program (HSRP), representatives from an FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) office in Springfield (IL) will visit the WIU-Macomb campus this week. During the visit, the representatives will deliver a presentation at 11 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 7, Stipes Hall 121, as the first installment of the Spring 2013 HSRP Lecture Series. All presentations in the HSRP Lecture Series are open free to the public.

According to Dean Alexander, director of WIU's HSRP and associate professor in the School of Law Enforcement and Justice Administration (LEJA), the representatives from the JTTF will provide an overview of the organization; its activities in combating domestic and international terrorism; and career opportunities in law enforcement.

"The purpose of the HSRP Lecture Series is to expose WIU students, faculty and the Macomb community with the insights and perspectives of law enforcement practitioners and academics on a variety of homeland security and national security issues," Alexander explained. "In doing so, we are able to obtain a better understanding of the complex and ever-evolving nature of such issues. Additionally, students are able to make contacts with the guest speakers in relation to internships, full-time positions and graduate school."

The remaining presentations in the Spring 2013 HSRP Lecture Series are slated for March and April and will feature:

  • Magnus Bernhardsson, professor of Middle Eastern history, Williams College (Williamstown, MA), who will present, "Dangerous Times Ahead? The Arab Spring and the future of the Middle East," at 2 p.m. Tuesday, March 19 in Stipes Hall 121.
  • Donald Kauerauf, chair of the Illinois Terrorism Task Force Emergency Management Agency, who will speak at 11 a.m. Tuesday, April 9 in Stipes Hall 121.

Since its Fall 2006 inception, the School of LEJA's Homeland Security Research Program has been involved in a number of activities, such as curriculum development, organizing events, as well as research and writing. As director of the HSRP program, Alexander has spearheaded the development of the homeland security undergraduate minor, which is now one of the largest areas of minor study at Western with more than 200 students. Through the HSRP, four new security-related courses have also been developed, including, "Terrorism and Law Enforcement"; Terror Financing"; "Legal Aspects of Terrorism" (all LEJA); and "Terrorism in South Asia."

In 2011, the HSRP initiated the lecture series, which has featured presentations by terrorism and legal experts from across a wide range of national and international agencies and academic organizations, including: Uri Rosset, Sapir College (Sderot, Israel); Stephen Recca, deputy director of the Partnerships Programs at the Center for Homeland Defense and Security at the Naval Postgraduate School (Monterey, CA); Shoji Motooka, former bureau chief of NHKTV (Japan Broadcasting Corp.) in Islamabad, Pakistan, and Kabul Afghanistan; Brad Carnduff, director of the Illinois Statewide Terrorism and Intelligence Center (Springfield, IL); and Mir Sadat, faculty member at National Intelligence University (Washington, D.C.).

In addition, through the HSRP, Alexander and HSRP faculty have conducted research and published on various homeland-security focused topics, including terror financing, radicalization and recruitment of terrorists via the Internet, terrorism and law enforcement, terrorism's impact on business and more.

For more information, contact Alexander at DC-Alexander@wiu.edu.

Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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