NFTF - The Front of Military Education and Security Cooperation

Security cooperation is a multifaceted effort that requires more than just planning to develop the skills of a foreign security force. In 2017, the National Defense Authorization Act created the DOD Security Cooperation Workforce Development Program (SCWDP) to develop and manage supporting security programs, improve the quality of the security cooperation workforce, and ensure personnel have the appropriate level of expertise and experience to perform their missions. The 2017 NDAA also directed the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) to manage the SCWDP’s training and education standards, as well as identify and define training and certification requirements. Specifically, DSCA was required to “establish and maintain a school to train, educate, and certify the security cooperation workforce … .” To meet this obligation, DSCA established the Defense Security Cooperation University (DSCU) in September 2019, to educate and certify 20,000 U.S. government employees’ security cooperation and standardize their training. This article provides a brief description of the threat environment security cooperation must work within, an overview of the new DSCU, a discussion of the legal requirements emplaced on the DSCU, and an example course from DSCU.