Wright State University to manage high-tech intelligence training center

Wright State University has taken a big step to boost its workforce development efforts.

The school's Wright State Applied Research Corp. recently signed a shared services and management agreement with the Advanced Technical Intelligence Center in Beavercreek.

Also known as ATIC, the organization provides highly classified intelligence training in areas such as cyber security, counterterrorism and understanding how to read intelligence documents from the field. It serves the defense, intelligence and law enforcement sectors.

ATIC will remain a separate nonprofit with its own name and board, but is now being managed by Wright State Applied Research, an affiliate of the school.

If this deal is successful, it will raise the profile of both organizations while making the Dayton region more appealing to defense and technology companies.

"It just made more sense as a way of reducing costs on both fronts to come together and work together," said Dennis Andersh, CEO of Wright State Applied Research Corp. "We need services they have over there, so we'll be securing their support to help us in security and other areas. We're also looking for ways to grow ATIC into other domains ... and this makes it easier."

Retired U.S. Air Force Col. Cassie Barlow has been named executive director of ATIC and will continue to serve as executive director of Wright State's Aerospace Professional Development Center.

Wright State helped establish the Regional STEM Collaborative, which is in the same building as ATIC, so the new ATIC agreement will better centralize all of Wright State's workforce development efforts, Andersh said.