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“Is intelligence gathering in the 21st century more like James Bond, Jack Ryan… or something else entirely?”

On October 30, Former CIA official Ron Marks, Chair of Daniel Morgan Graduate School’s Intelligence Master’s Program and a 35-year veteran of the U.S. national security community, visited The Dole Institute of Politics on KU’s West Campus to lead an exploration of the world of intelligence gathering and national security. Marks guided guests through the realities and challenges of a career in intelligence.

“James Bond never had to fill out a government report,” Marks explains. “He never had to explain why the things he did in the field did or didn’t work. He certainly had an interesting travel budget!” Marks continues, “What intelligence is ultimately about is the collection of information and making sense of that information. Young people come to me and they ask me what to do to have a career in intelligence, and they always have this Bond thing in mind . . . but their are a lot of different roles to be played and a lot of different careers that are available. . . There are so many different kinds of jobs now.” Ronald Marks uses his understanding of the many different careers and kinds of jobs in the intelligence community to prepare DMGS students for their own careers in intelligence. He provides personalized career guidance and rigorous training in his role as chair of our Intelligence Program.

The Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics is dedicated to promoting political and civic participation as well as civil discourse in a bipartisan, philosophically balanced manner. Ron Marks maintains his connection to numerous organizations like The Dole Institute of Politics thanks to his days serving as intelligence counsel to Senate Majority Leaders Bob Dole and Trent Lott.

Program Chair

Ronald A. Marks is currently the Chair of the Intelligence program at the Daniel Morgan Graduate School of National Security (DMGS).

Ronald “Ron” Marks is a 33-year veteran of the U.S. national security community. A former CIA official, Ron was a clandestine service officer and a Senate Liaison for five DCIs. He went on to serve on Capitol Hill as Intelligence Counsel to Senate Majority Leaders Robert Dole and Trent Lott. Ron maintains his involvement with intelligence matters as a member of various Intelligence Community advisory groups.

Marks was President of Intelligence Enterprises, LLC, a privately held national security management-consulting firm. He also headed the DC office of Oxford Analytics, a nationally recognized analytical, strategic, and consuling firm.

He is the author of Spying in America in the Post 9/11 World: Domestic Threat and the Need for Change.