By Joann Groff
Assistant News Editor
Alumna Jami Miscik told Pepperdine faculty and students there were things that remain unknown at the CIA — mysteries that even the agents hadn’t solved — and if anyone knows, it’s definitely her.
Miscik was appointed to deputy director for intelligence in May after working for the CIA since 1983, three years after graduating from Seaver college. She is the first woman to head up all of the agency’s intelligence analysis, not to mention, one of the highest-ranking women in the CIA. She came to Pepperdine Monday to speak to members of the Pepperdine community on “Intelligence and the War on Terrorism.”
Dr. Dan Caldwell, professor of political science, was responsible for getting Miscik to speak at Pepperdine.
“I was very anxious to get her here because she is one of the most important figures in the United States government in preventing another terrorist attack on the U.S.,” Caldwell said.
Miscik organized her lecture around the process of sorting intelligence information into three categories: the facts, the secrets and the mysteries. She applied this structure to the information that runs across her desk everyday about the war in Iraq, weapons of mass destruction and other threats against the United States.
“You see in the movies and TV that these CIA people are all secretive and are desk-job nerds,” freshman Tim Schoenfeld said. “But she was really open … and articulate and did a really good job of being informative.”
Miscik told students about her responsibilities at the agency, which include organizing the information contained in the daily CIA briefings for the president. Miscik explained the challenges of compiling necessary information for top government decision-makers.
“If you warn about everything, you warn about nothing,” Miscik said to the crowd of about 120. She told of the challenges behind presenting the information as well as she could, reporting that her department probably warns the president of some threat every day.
At the end of the lecture, Miscik answered questions about everything from the FBI and the CIA’s cooperation, nuclear programs and retired military analysts, to the CIA’s reliance on technology and how terrorist groups communicate. Many attendees said this time was the most valuable.
“The question and answer session was the best part because we could talk to someone who graduated from Pepperdine and now affects the world around us,” said freshman Chris Stieber. “We could ask questions and use the knowledge we use in the classroom to apply to everyday life.”
Questions were also geared toward internships and employment opportunities in the CIA.
Following in Miscik’s footsteps could be tough, which she demonstrated with a surprising statistic: the CIA receives more than 2,500 resumes each week. Miscik said they usually hire candidates right out of graduate school.
“From our perspective at Pepperdine, she’s a grad, and she was sitting on the other side of the lectern 20 years ago,” Caldwell said. “This shows, very tangibly, that our students can compete and contend with any one else in country.”
Miscik agreed Pepperdine students should be confident in their abilities.
“You are in a distinctive environment,” Miscik said. “Your professors teach you and grade you, rather than grad students (teaching you and grading you) — they care about you.”
September 11, 2003