How Monterey County’s single largest civilian employer provides trained and educated linguists essential to the Department of Defense and the National Security Agency.
SPEAKER
Colonel Christy Whitfield
Commandant, DLI
Thursday, February 20th, 2025
Lecture Luncheon
Overview
The Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center (DLIFLC) is the largest foreign language school in the world. With 1,000 plus civilian faculty of which 95% are foreign born and educated in the countries of their birth. 84% of the faculty have graduate degrees and of those 21% have PhDs. The 2,000 plus student body is multi-service (Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps) and must meet strict recruiting standards to include background investigations providing a Top-Secret Security Clearance. Depending on the language they will study, they will undergo six to 15 months of daily intense language and cultural training and education. The student body includes officers and enlisted and is 26 % female. 66% of the student body is under the age of 25.
Please join us to meet the new Commandant of DLI, Colonel Christy Whitfield, and hear her discuss the global footprint of DLIFLC, its mission and vision. Colonel Whitfield is the 32nd Commandant of the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center. Prior to her appointment to DLI she served as the senior intelligence officer in the Intelligence Directorate at the United States Special Operations Command, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. Her career has taken her to Korea and Italy and four year-long combat deployments in Afghanistan, Syria, and Iraq. Colonel Whitfield graduated as a Distinguished Military Graduate from Louisiana State University.
Date and Times
- Thursday, February 20th, 2025
- 11:30 AM: Registration
- 12:00 PM: Luncheon
- 12:45 PM: Speaker
Menu
- Salad: Baby Iceberg Wedge, Bacon Lardons, Heirloom Tomatoes, Crumbled Blue Cheese, Pickled Red Onion with Point Reyes Blue Cheese Dressing
- Artisan Breads and Butter
- Entree: Spinach and Feta Stuffed Chicken Breast, Scalloped Potatoes, Charred Broccolini with Carrot-Tumeric Purée, Blistered Grape Tomatoes with a Lemon Thyme Cream
- Vegetarian Alternative: Al Pastor Cauliflower Steak with Achiote Marinade, Heritage Grains, Roasted Brussel Sprouts, Grilled Pineapple with a Vegan Ancho Crema
- Dessert: Pineapple-Carrot Walnut Cake
Cost
- $55 for World Affairs Council members
- $65 for Guests
Registration
If you encounter difficulties with our online registration please email info@wacmb.org or tel. 831-643-1855 to reserve a spot by close of registration – Thursday, February 13th, 2025
We regret that we cannot accommodate auditors on this occasion.
Recording of this event is not permitted.
Registrations are due by Thursday, February 13th, 2025
Please note: Cancellations after the deadline are non-refundable.
Location
The Ferrantes Room
Monterey Marriott
350 Calle Principal
Monterey, CA, 93940