HONOLULU — Leaders from the Regional Centers met last week in Hawaii to discuss the “way ahead.” The Regional Center Quarterly Roundtable, held Nov. 30 to Dec. 2, was the eighth in a continuing series of meetings dealing with programs and management oversight of the seven Security Cooperation and Studies Centers, comprised of the five regional centers for security studies and the globally-focused Naval Postgraduate School’s School of International Graduate Studies (SIGS) and National Defense University’s Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS).Chairing the meeting was The Honorable Ryan Henry, Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. In attendance were Mr. Barry Pavel, Principal Director for Strategy, and other senior members of the USDP staff, along with center directors and deputies from the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies, the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies, the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies, NDU, and SIGS.

Topics discussed at the meeting included: US security policy updates; Security Center executive agent transition; and work plans for in-residence and regional-area outreach programs, as well as alumni outreach, research initiatives and strategic communications.

According to one round-table attendee, “This roundtable again permitted OSD and regional center leaders to continue to discuss views and share recommendations related to the evolving regional center vision in support of OSD and Combatant Commander security cooperation objectives, and begin to forge key supporting roles in the areas of strategic communications and stability, security, transition and reconstruction support.”

Leaders of the Regional Centers meet on a quarterly basis. Their next meeting will be held in March at the George C. Marshall Center for Security Studies.