Deputy U.S. National Security Advisor to speak at Rider University

The Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University will present “The Challenges of Homeland Security: An Evening with Avril Haines” on Jan. 30.

Haines has served as an Assistant to the President and Deputy U.S. National Security Advisor since 2015. Previously, she was Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. She was the first woman to hold that position.

In announcing her appointment to her current position, President Obama called her a “model public servant” who is “respected across the government for her intelligence, work ethic, and humility, which she has displayed in positions spanning the three branches of government.”

Haines first joined the White House as the Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Counsel to the President for National Security Affairs.  She has also worked in the State Department, for the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and as a law clerk for Judge Danny Boggs on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. From 2001 to 2002, she was a legal officer at The Hague Conference on Private International Law.

“Avril Haines has been deeply involved with the most significant issues of homeland security at the highest level of government,” said Dr. Benjamin Dworkin, director of the Rebovich Institute. “Her insights should be of supreme interest to anyone concerned about the safety and security of the country, especially the growing number of Rider students who are now focusing on this field.”

Haines received a bachelor’s degree in Physics from the University of Chicago, founded and ran a bookstore café for five years while engaged in community service in Baltimore, and then went to law school at Georgetown University Law Center, where she received her law degree.

“The Challenges of Homeland Security: An Evening with Avril Haines” will begin with a light reception at 6 p.m., followed by remarks at 7 p.m. and a question-and-answer period with the audience.

The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place in the Cavalla Room in the Bart Luedeke Center on Rider’s Lawrenceville campus. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis, and visitors are encouraged to register at www.rider.edu/haines.

Rider University's master's program in Homeland Security Studies offers a distinctive, multidisciplinary approach to preparing professionals for leadership roles in protecting the United States, its interests and its allies from terrorist attacks, as well as responding to natural disasters and other threats to the safety and welfare of our communities, state and nation. Coursework is ideally scheduled for working professionals, featuring both evening and blended (in-person and online) classes.

Advance reservations to attend “The Challenges of Homeland Security: An Evening with Avril Haines” are requested by visiting www.rider.edu/haines.

Additional questions about the program should be directed to Susan Cuccia at 609-896-5350 or [email protected].

(PHOTO: PETE SOUZA/THE WHITE HOUSE)