Ron Athmann currently serves as the Deputy Director for the Intelligence Training Academy within the Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A). From 2013-2019 he served as the Senior Intelligence Officer for the I&A Collection and Requirements Division enhancing open-source intelligence capabilities, expanding geospatial analysis support to operations, and rejuvenating I&A’s document and media exploitation efforts. From 2009-2012 he was the Deputy Director for I&A’s State and Local Program Office where he managed field operations and the build out of I&A’s support to State and Local Fusion Centers across the country, initiated the standup of the DHS Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative across DHS in sync with the DHS See Something, Say Something initiative, and integrated with the Nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative Program Management Office. From 2007-2010, he was the Regional Director for the National Capital Region (NCR) supporting many State and Local Fusion Center startups, threat responses, and national security special event operations in Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington DC. Since joining DHS as an I&A Plank Holder in 2003, he has stood up many new initiatives as the Director, Current Intelligence Division and Director, Homeland Environment Threat Analysis Division, and COOP/COG senior member leading I&A continuity of operations and expanding those capabilities.
Ron retired as a Captain in the United States Navy after 26 years. He served as Deputy Director of Intelligence at the National Military Command Center directly supporting the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) and Secretary of Defense. Past assignments included serving as the JCS J2 Terrorism Warning Officer, Deputy Team Chief for Pentagon Terrorism Task Force, Director of Operations for Defense Intelligence Agency Reserve Unit in support of DIA/Joint Intelligence Task Force-Combating Terrorism, and Mine Warfare Senior Officer at the Naval War College. He performed a 3-year tour at the U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters supporting counter-drug missions, served 7 years in the Navy’s Submarine Service as a Weapons Officer, and 3 years as a Special Projects Officer/Submarine Liaison Officer at the Mine Warfare Command specializing in Soviet and Third-World country capabilities.
In the private sector, Ron was the OSHA Certified Incident Commander for Hazardous Materials (HAZMAT) Operations in Northeastern Pennsylvania under the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and was an Operations Manager for emergency environmental cleanup projects.
Ron holds a Juris Doctorate from Vermont Law School with a specialty in environmental law and a Bachelor of Arts in environmental biology and chemistry from Saint Mary’s University in Minnesota.