Anyone who wants to keep the world safe should have an avenue to make an impact.
Recent News & Research
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Neurodiversity and National Security
How to Tackle National Security Challenges with a Wider Range of Cognitive Talents
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Projections of Disability in the Department of Defense Workforce Through 2031
Estimating Future Assistive Technology Requirements for Department of Defense Civilian Employees and Service Members
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Why Diversity and Inclusion Are Essential for National Security
National security is not just about military strength or intelligence capabilities — it’s about ensuring that the U.S. can anticipate, understand, and respond to threats from every possible angle.
Disability Employment Resources
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Workforce Recruitment Program
The Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) connects federal and private-sector employers with college students, graduate students and recent graduates with disabilities who want to demonstrate their abilities in the workplace through internships or full-time jobs.
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Schedule A Hiring Authorities
In the non-competitive hiring process, agencies use a special authority (Schedule A) to hire persons with disabilities without requiring them to compete for the job. In the competitive process, applicants compete with each other through a structured process.
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Job Accommodation Network (JAN)
JAN provides job accommodation solutions, trusted interactive process strategies, and practical guidance on Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Accommodations play a vital role in increasing job opportunities for people with disabilities.
National Security Micro-Learning
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AI in National Security: Integrating Artificial Intelligence into Public Sector Missions
The Special Competitive Studies Project, in partnership with Coursera, created this custom course to upskill national security professionals in AI.
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Understanding 9/11: Why 9/11 Happened & How Terrorism Affects Our World Today
This course will explore the forces that led to the 9/11 attacks and the policies the United States adopted in response.
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Introduction to the Threat Intelligence Lifecycle
This course overviews the Threat Intelligence lifecycle, or the planning, collecting, processing, analyzing, and disseminating of information to help mitigate potential attacks or threats.
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Cybersecurity Attack and Defense Fundamentals Specialization
This course is ideal for those entering the cybersecurity workforce, providing foundational, hands-on skills to solve the security issues organizations face.
National Security Figures with Disabilities
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Tammy Duckworth
SENATOR
Ladda Tammy Duckworth is an American politician, retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel, and Iraq War combat veteran serving since 2017 as the junior United States senator from Illinois.
In 2004, when her Black Hawk helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Iraqi insurgents, she lost both legs and some mobility in her right arm. She was the first female double amputee from the war. She was awarded a medical waiver to continue serving in the Illinois Army National Guard for another ten years until she retired as a lieutenant colonel.
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Max Cleland
ADMINISTRATOR, VETERAN AFFAIRS
Joseph Maxwell Cleland was an American politician from Georgia. A member of the Democratic Party, he was a highly decorated disabled U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War as well as a United States Senator.
After returning from the Vietnam War having lost three limbs, he entered politics soon after recovering from his injuries. He served as a Georgia State Senator, as Administrator of Veterans Affairs under President Jimmy Carter, and as Georgia Secretary of State before being elected to a single term in the United States Senate. -
Dan Choi
INFANTRY OFFICER
Dan Choi is an American former infantry officer in the United States Army who served in combat in the Iraq War during 2006–2007.
Choi has spoken publicly about his struggles with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), diagnosed due to a ringing in his ears following his deployment. He attributes his PTSD to his combat duty in the Iraq War, where he served as an Arabic linguist and field engineer. Choi has described experiencing nightmares, difficulty sleeping, gastrointestinal issues, stress, and other health problems when he returned.