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UNO, NU Educators Facilitate Leadership Program

  • contact: Charley Reed - University Communications
  • phone: 402.554.2129
USSTRATCOM Fellows

UNO Chancellor John Christensen joins deans Louis Pol and Hesham Ali in welcoming former USSTRATCOM Commander Cecil Haney to a USSTRATCOM Fellows event at Mammel Hall

OMAHA – On Friday, Jan. 20, a group of 10 civilian employees from the United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) began a semester-long course led by experts from across the University of Nebraska system.

Now in its fourth year, the USSTRATCOM Leadership Fellows program is a 13-week, graduate-level course specifically designed for civilian leaders who have been identified as committed to delivering results, making sound decisions and showing commitment to the mission, values, and personnel of USSTRATCOM.

The coursework is overseen by faculty from the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) while also leveraging expertise from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) and University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK).

The kickoff event for the new class of leaders took place at Mammel Hall and featured remarks from NU President Hank Bounds and UNO Chancellor John Christensen, as well as a keynote address from USSTRATCOM Deputy Commander Vice Adm. Charles A. Richard.

UNO, NSRI, USSTRATCOM Logos

The USSTRATCOM Leadership Fellows program launched in 2014 as a first-of-its-kind effort between UNO and the University of Nebraska's National Strategic Research Institute (NSRI), one of only 13 Department of Defense-sponsored University Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs) in the nation.

As part of the coursework, participants will learn skills in areas such a team building, collaboration management, data‐driven decision making and project management, combined with mission-core competency development.

Participants will also have the opportunity to visit businesses and organizations from across the state to learn leadership skills. Visits will include the Henry Doorly Zoo, state government offices, UNL’s Diocles Laser Lab and UNO’s Baxter Arena.

Following graduation, participants will return to their departments within USSTRATCOM. Those looking to continue their education will be able to use the graduate credits earned through the program toward a future UNO graduate degree.

UNO professors Dr. Doug Derrick and Dr. Gina Ligon are once again overseeing the program. Both have conducted numerous research projects on national security strategies for the Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security.

An additional 23 faculty with expertise in areas such as cybersecurity, international studies, entrepreneurship and organizational psychology will help provide content for the course.

For media inquiries, please contact Charley Reed, UNO associate director of media relations, at 402.554.2129 or unonews@unomaha.edu.

About NSRI
Founded in 2012, the National Strategic Research Institute (NSRI) at the University of Nebraska is the only University Affiliated Research Center (UARC) in the country dedicated to delivering solutions for Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction (CWMD) to U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) and across other federal agencies. NSRI provides research and development for the U.S. Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, and other governmental agencies in multiple mission-critical competency areas — including development of medical countermeasures to WMD; nuclear detection and forensics; consequence management; chemical and biological weapons detection; and space, cyber, and telecom law. Learn more at nsri.nebraska.edu.

About the University of Nebraska at Omaha

Located in one of America’s best cities to live, work and learn, the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is Nebraska’s premier metropolitan university. With more than 15,000 students enrolled in 200-plus programs of study, UNO is recognized nationally for its online education, graduate education, military friendliness and community engagement efforts. Founded in 1908, UNO has served learners of all backgrounds for more than 100 years and is dedicated to another century of excellence both in the classroom and in the community.

Become a fan of UNO on Facebook: www.facebook.com/unomaha and follow UNO's Twitter updates at http://twitter.com/unomaha.

About U.S. Strategic Command
One of nine DoD unified combatant commands, USSTRATCOM has global strategic missions, assigned through the Unified Command Plan, which include strategic deterrence; space operations; cyberspace operations; joint electronic warfare; global strike; missile defense; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; and analysis and targeting.

For more information, contact the USSTRATCOM Public Affairs Office at 402.294.4130 or usstratcompa@mail.mil, or visit www.stratcom.mil.