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VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – After six months of rigorous and demanding training, Naval Intelligence Officer Basic Course students at Information Warfare Training Command Virginia Beach took part in a closing event designed to provide a glimpse into real-world operations.
Last month, NIOBC Class 26020’s final week was restructured into a dynamic professional-development capstone that brought the officers to intelligence facilities across Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. From May 18-22, the class was immersed in tangible applications of its curriculum aboard USS Kearsarge and maritime-intelligence watch floors, analysis centers and national-level combat support agencies such as the Office of Naval Intelligence and Defense Intelligence Agency.
Course administrators said each intelligence site lies at the intersection of multiple warfare areas, collection capabilities and mission scopes, providing students a unique opportunity to fit the pieces of their academic experience into a living, breathing problem set. They observed identification of indications and warnings, navigated complex joint-intelligence collection operations and gained exposure to translating strategic global information into tactical intelligence.
“The capstone allowed our students to jump from classroom research, theory and academics to becoming an active member of the community,” said Lt. Daniel Bradford, a NIOBC instructor.
NIOBC graduates are trained to think like their adversary counterparts, understanding platform capabilities and limitations while providing commanders and operators with timely and relevant battlespace awareness.
At the conclusion of capstone week, students reflected on the training activities, which provided them a deeper understanding of their role as all-source intelligence integrators.
“The capstone gave me a new appreciation for the intel capabilities we used throughout the course,” said Lt. Mandy Cervantez of NIOBC Class 26020. “Seeing in person how those products are developed and disseminated helped me tie the course together with my new job at my follow-on command in a relevant and practical way.”
Bradford and Lt. Michael Cruz, another NIOBC instructor, were behind the initiative. They dedicated months toward crafting an impactful lesson for students.
Drawing on their 38 years of combined Navy service, Bradford and Cruz selected key sites and training opportunities within the naval and national intelligence ecosystem where students can connect outcomes of their classroom-based studies with hands-on mentorship.
“A common theme emerged from the many conversations students had with community leaders and analysts: Personal growth and improvement in critical thinking is forever an unfinished task for the 1830 Sailor,” Bradford said, referring to the Navy’s intelligence officer designator.
As adversaries grow more adaptive, sophisticated and confident in their maritime strategies every year, naval intelligence officers must maintain a relentless drive for deepening their technical expertise and ability to solve complex problems, Cruz added.
“The goal is to give students familiarity with the pressures of the job and the confidence that they need to hit the ground running,” he said. “They benefited from exposure to the complexity of our job, early on. Now, they can more easily translate their classroom training into the high standards and intellectual demands of the job on day one.”
IWTC Virginia Beach, part of the Center for Information Warfare Training, offers more than 70 specialized courses in fields such as information technology, cryptology and intelligence. The command is staffed by about 330 military, civilian, and contractor personnel and trains over 6,500 students a year at locations across the U.S., including Jacksonville and Mayport, Florida; Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Georgia; and Groton, Connecticut.
CIWT’s network of four schoolhouse commands and multiple training sites around the globe delivers world-class instruction to more than 26,000 students annually. It ensures the Navy, Marine Corps and Department of War are equipped with the highest caliber of intelligence professionals, ready to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving global landscape.
| Date Taken: | 05.20.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 06.26.2026 13:50 |
| Story ID: | 568290 |
| Location: | VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 10 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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