ITEMS OF INTEREST TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-00428R000100090081-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 13, 2007
• Sequence Number: 81
• Publication Date: January 29, 1982
• Content Type: MEMO

OTE 82-1013
29 January 1982
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AEh)RAND ft4 FOR: Deputy Director for Administration
Director o azning and Education
SUBJECT: Items of Interest to the Executive Director
REFERENCE: Memorandum from Executive Director to DDA,
dated 25 January 1982, Subject: Items of Interest
1. Detailed below are suggested responses to the two items relating
to the Office of Training and Education (OTE) which were raised by the
Executive Director in paragraph 2 of reference memorandum.
a. OTE's Ties to the Outside Academic World: 0th makes a
continuing and concerted effort to ensure that its personnel are in
contact with the academic world and commercial private sector training
organizations so that we can be confident that we are keeping up with
the state-of-the-art. I am sure you are aware of the extensive inter-
play between the academic community and the faculty of the Language
Training Division. In this particular area we devote considerable
resources to working with both private and Government schools toward
the common goal of stimulating the Nation's language training
programs., It is obvious from these contacts that our approaches are
not only up-to-date but that we are in fact a recognized leader in this
area of study. The Office's professional contacts with the outside
world are by no means limited to the area of language training. In
all areas of OTE's activities there are examples of our determination
to develop professionally and to continually apply new techniques and
approaches where axra-ariate.
25X1
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S
SUBJECT: Items of Interest to the Executive Director
use in OTE. Three staff officers of ME whose specialty is educational
technology and methodology have within the last 12 months attended
professional conferences or seminars where they have been able to
update their knowledge of this important area. In addition to these
efforts, we have recruited new officers from outside of the Agency
to join our career service who bring with them current skills from both
the private sector and other areas of the Government. I believe that
all these examples demonstrate the commitment of OTE to ensuring that
we are staying on top of the rapidly changing developments in the whole
field of training and education, and I believe that in terms'of
content, technique, and staff capability our offerings are comparable
to the best that is available elsewhere.
b. Basic Courses and Curriculum Pertinence: Every course or
program conducted by (ITE is subject to frequent review and analysis--not
only by the staff responsible for the particular course but also on a
systematic basis by the Curriculum Committee and by OTE management.
For the most part,*these courses and offerings are not static and
are being changed, modified, and improved with regularity. Even the
"old standbys" are not exempt from this process. The Midcareer Course
within the last three years has undergone extensive modification,
In an attempt to increase participation on the part of students and to
provide as part of the course some basic management training. The
Senior Seminar was torn down to the ground and rebuilt as an entirely
new offering with new goals as the Senior Officer Development Course.
Basic orientation courses have been reworked, tightened up, and shortened
where appropriate. In support of changing trends and emphasis within
the Agency, new courses have appeared. Where not long ago Career Trainees
started their training process with a rather superficial'three-week
orientation, they are now exposed to a polished ten-week course that
much more thoroughly prepares them for upcoming interim assignments
within the Agency and further specialized training. Each time a course
is run, the staff of (IT`E is exposed to a wealth of candid criticism
from the participants. Adding to this input is the fact that the OTE
staff is at present at an all-time high in terms of professionalism,
and as a result, are their own most severe critics. A good example
of,this latter point can be seen in the Management Seminar. At the time
that she assumed basic responsibilities for this course,
critically reviewed past runnings, conducted an. outstand rig training
needs assessment, and reworked the course from top to bottom. The
initiative for this work came from her. It was not pushed by IG reviews,
management pressures, or other external factors. It is basic OTE policy
to insist on pertinence in our offerings and to assume a leadership
role in Agency training as opposed to merely responding to today's
(or in some cases yesterday's) requirements. While our curriculum is
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SUBJECT: Items of Interest to-the Executive Director
far from perfect, I believe sincerely that given the resources available
to us, we are doing a superb job of offering high quality training that
is relevant to the current and anticipated needs of CIA.
2. To the extent that any of the Executive Director's interest may
have been piqued by the December memorandum prepared by the DDO Senior
Training Officer, I believe that some comment is in order. I thin 25X1
memorandum which challenged several of our basic courses in their present form
was a good faith effort on his part to establish a constructive dialogue.
Unfortunately, the memorandum was not based on as much knowledge of the courses
to which it spoke as would have been desirable, and equally unfortunate was the
fact that it received distribution to various senior Agency officers prior to
its author and OTE sitting down and dealing with its content in aconstructive
manner. We have now had such a discussion with the author of the memorandum, and
I believe he would be the first to admit that modifications of at least some of
his positions- and recommendations would be in order. I think that he and we
.have benefitted from our discussions and that both parties will move ahead in an
attempt to satisfy some of the training problems faced by the DDO.
Distribution:
Orig - Addee
1 - DTE File
c DTE Chrono
1 - OTF. nPv
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