Each March, the United States celebrates the impact of women in our nation and communities during Women鈥檚 History Month. 海角在线 (海角在线) eagerly joins in the celebration by highlighting just a few of the many impactful women who make up our staff, faculty, alumni, and student body.
Michele Rigby Assad is a 海角在线聽alumna聽and former CIA Intelligence Officer who聽specialized in counterterrorism, counterintelligence and lie detection. She had five overseas tours, spending聽the majority of聽her career in the Middle East, including Iraq and other secret locations.聽Since leaving the CIA, she and her husband have run an international consulting firm that provides support to Western and not-native companies working in the Arabian Gulf, the wider Middle East, and several countries in Asia and Europe (SITE Advisors).聽Assad聽was recently awarded 海角在线鈥檚 third annual聽Humanitarian Award for her聽commitment to international聽diplomacy, exemplary leadership,聽and unwavering dedication to supporting 海角在线 over the years.聽Read on to learn what Women鈥檚 History Month means to her.
Why is Women鈥檚 History Month meaningful to you?
My service as a CIA intelligence officer was a challenge because of internal CIA ideas about women’s capabilities (including the lack of interest to know what our skills, experience, and talents were), compounded by serving in the Middle East where women’s rights were seriously impacted by religion, culture, and ideology. I had to work extra hard to shine, and am proud of all women who have faced similar challenges and triumphed to have an impact in our various industries. This month is a good time to reflect on the strength, perseverance, and faith needed to triumph no matter what the challenge.
Who is a woman who has made a significant impact upon your life, and how?
My mother worked hard, ran her own business, and instilled the values of hard work and perseverance in me. My mother-in-law ran an orphanage in Egypt and raised ten thousand children by great faith and endurance.
What are some challenges you have faced in your career and how have you聽sought聽to
overcome them?
I have literally written a whole book on this! When I started tradecraft training in the CIA, there was a very strong assumption that women could not handle terrorist or insurgent sources in the Middle East because those sources don’t respect women. What they didn’t calculate is how hard I worked to understand Arab culture, how much time I’d spent in the Arab World seeking to interact with all kinds of people, and they didn’t consider my yearning to succeed. In 10 years of service, I was able to demonstrate that you can overcome obstacles with your intellect, which I showed by being smarter than my terror assets. I used my emotional intelligence to win their respect and induce them to work with me. And even when they didn’t respect me, I’d use that to uncover double agents and lying sources.
What advice would you give to young women launching their careers?
Don’t聽ever give up. Work harder. Be smarter. Develop wisdom through experience. Go where others聽won’t聽go. Do what others聽won’t聽do. Be courageous when others are scared, timid, or聽don’t聽want to put themselves out there.
Is there anything else you would like to share?
God knows what you are capable of, even when you聽don’t. If he opens a door, even if it is deeply uncomfortable or intimidating, do it and聽don’t聽give up. Even if you are sent to war zones, you get shelled every day, and聽you’re聽dealing with lies and fabrications at every turn鈥攊t’s聽those hard spaces and difficulties that make the woman/man.
Assad will return to campus in May as this year鈥檚 commencement speaker.聽Read her latest book, 鈥�,鈥� in the meantime to learn her strategies for overcoming fear, uncertainty, and intimidation to push past what you think you鈥檙e capable of.
