The Vernon Walters Pilot Scholarship Program: A Proposal to Change How the US Intelligence Community Recruits Near-Native Speakers of Critical Languages

Abstract

In response to the national need for speakers of critical languages,such as those spoken in the Middle East and Asia, I propose that the Intelligence Community start a pilot program, through the office of the Director of National Intelligence, to change how it recruits and hires these speakers. the paper describes the current process, proposes a pilot, and outlines a vision of what a more comprehensive approach could look like. The pilot involves creating a relationship with Congressional representatives and local governmental representatives as well as selected Community Colleges. The advantages of these relationships could be better relationships with local immigrant communities and risk mitigation in the hiring process. This paper was awarded one of the ODNI Galileo prizes in 2005 and it has been reviewed before publication by the Central Intelligence Agency.