Inter-American Defense College



The Inter-American Defense College (IADC) is an international educational institution located in Washington D.C., United States, operating under the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Inter-American Defense Board (IADB).

Program
The IADC course provides a professionally oriented, multidisciplinary, graduate-level course of study. The eleven-month program provides senior military and government officials with a comprehensive understanding of governmental systems, the current international environment, structure and function of the Inter-American system, and an opportunity to study broad based security issues affecting the Hemisphere and the world. The development of these concentrations is accomplished through the detailed study of political, economic, psychosocial, and military factors of power. The College takes advantage of the educational and research facilities in the Washington D.C. area as well as external academic visits to the Americas. Faculty and students also engage in research and publishing. IADC students follow a demanding curriculum that includes seminars, daily briefings, travel abroad, and preparing a final monograph that charges each student to take a position on hot topics within the Western Hemisphere.

History
The IADC, located on Fort Lesley J. McNair, was formally opened on 9 October 1962 when the Honorable Dean Rusk, then Secretary of State of the United States, presented the building and furnishings donated by the United States Government. Doctor Jose A. Mora, then Secretary General of the Organization of American States, was the principal speaker at the opening ceremony. The first class, with 29 students representing 15 American republics, received their diplomas on 20 March 1963 with then Vice President of the United States, Lyndon B. Johnson, giving the graduation address and awarding diplomas.

Since its opening more than 2,000 students have graduated from the IADC, of which many have gone on to become presidents, cabinet ministers, ambassadors, or general officers for their respective nations. In January 2006, Class 37 graduate Michelle Bachelet was elected president of Chile, becoming the second IADC graduate to be elected to presidential office, after Lucio Gutiérrez of Ecuador.

Distinguished Alumni

 * General Otto Pérez Molina, Guatemalan Army (Ret), President of Guatemala
 * Michelle Bachelet, former President and former Minister of National Defense and Minister of Health of Chile, current head of UN Women
 * Lucio Gutiérrez, former President of Ecuador
 * Paco Moncayo, former Mayor of Quito and General of the Ecuadorian Army during the Alto Cenepa War, current congressman
 * Daniel Delgado Diamante, former Minister of Government and Justice of Panama
 * Ambassador Federico Alberto Gonzalez Franco, Permanent Representative to the United Nation at Geneva, former Vice Minister to External Relations, former Ambassador to Venezuela, Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia & Mongolia
 * Ambassador María de Lourdes Aranda Bezaury, Ambassador and former Under-Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Mexico
 * Almirante Mariano Francisco Saynez Mendoza, Mexican Navy, Secretary of the Navy (Mexico)
 * General Jorge Daniel Castro Castro, Director, Colombian National Police
 * General de División Otto A. Romero, Minister of Defense of El Salvador
 * General de División Ronaldo Cecilio Leiva, Minister of Defense of Guatemala
 * Major General William A. Navas, Jr., US Army (Ret), former Assistant Secretary of the Navy and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs
 * Brigadier General Albert Zapanta, US Army (Ret), former Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Management and Administration
 * Major General Alfred Valenzuela, US Army (Ret), Author of "No Greater Love: The Life and Times of Hispanic Soldiers"
 * Major General Antonio J. Vicens, US Army, Adjutant General of the Puerto Rico National Guard
 * Brigadier General Antonio J. Ramos, US Air Force (Ret)