David D Belt PhD

Professor David Belt, since 2008, has served as a full-time faculty member at National Intelligence University, Washington DC—the fully accredited graduate institution for the seventeen agencies in the U.S. intelligence community. There, he has led courses and supervised thesis research in the social analysis of strategic-level, security issues within Muslim communities worldwide, especially the broader Middle East.

Concurrently, Dr. Belt for nearly two-years led the 23-member nation Global Futures Forum’s project on Political Violence and Extremism, served two years as NIU’s first Chair/Head of the Regional Issues Department, and created the university’s Middle East concentration and its present six courses.

Previously, David served as Assistant Professor, National Security Studies, National Defense University. Concurrently, from 2005 through 2008, he led the 400-member invitation-only global community of interest on countering violent extremism, editing its bi-weekly newsletter, “Containing al-Qaedaism,” and developed and taught the university’s first national security professional certified course on that topic.

In a former military career, Captain Belt (ret.) also served twenty-six years on active-duty in various high-risk and combat operational and executive-level leadership positions within the U.S. Navy’s non-SEAL Special Operations Officer community.

He is a member of the class of 1982, U.S. Naval Academy, earned his Master’s in Security Studies and Strategic Resources at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces (currently the Eisenhower School), National Defense University, and was awarded his PhD from Virginia Tech’s School of Public and International Affairs, National Capital Region campus.